Former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro has denied new torture allegations during a court appearance in New York, calling the charges “false accusations”.
According to The Guardian, Maduro, 63, appeared in court on Thursday alongside his wife, Cilia Flores, 70, following an expanded US indictment involving drug trafficking and alleged torture.
The couple were captured by US forces during a raid on their Caracas home in January.
The revised indictment accuses Maduro of overseeing a system of repression involving beatings, electric shocks and suffocation, including the alleged torture of three Americans.
Prosecutors claim Maduro personally recommended torture methods, monitored victims’ treatment and threatened a prisoner’s child.
Flores is accused of helping establish the system and ordering the torture of specific individuals.
Maduro rejected the allegations, describing them as “false accusations and false testimony”.
When asked to enter a plea, Flores responded: “I am completely innocent. I am not guilty.”
Judge Alvin K Hellerstein entered not-guilty pleas on behalf of both defendants.
The couple had previously pleaded not guilty to charges alleging they conspired to bring cocaine into the United States.
Their lawyers argue the case should be dismissed because of immunity linked to their former positions.
Prosecutors said both sides want the trial moved from June 1 to June 14.
