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Published : 23 Jul 2026, 12:09 AM
Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores will go on trial on US drug trafficking charges starting on Jun 1, 2027, a judge said on Wednesday.
Maduro wore beige prison garb as he was led into a Manhattan courtroom by US marshals for a hearing before US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in one of the most consequential criminal cases in recent US history.
US commandos captured Maduro, 63, and Flores, 69, at their heavily guarded home in Caracas during a Jan 3 nighttime military raid ordered by President Donald Trump.
They were brought to New York, where they previously had been indicted on charges of using their leadership positions in the oil-rich South American country to facilitate cocaine shipments.
They have pleaded not guilty.
Defence lawyer Barry Pollack said on Wednesday he would seek to dismiss the case on the basis that Maduro should be immune from prosecution as the head of a sovereign state.
In a court filing on Tuesday night, prosecutors with the Manhattan US Attorney's office and Maduro's defence lawyers proposed a June 2027 start to the trial.
Hellerstein must ultimately set the schedule, and both parties said they may seek adjustments.
Maduro faces four felony counts, including narcoterrorism conspiracy and cocaine importation conspiracy.
He could face a life sentence if convicted.
Before the trial, Maduro is expected to file legal motions to seek to have the case dismissed. On Wednesday, Hellerstein set a Nov 17 hearing for arguments over those motions.
During Maduro's first court appearance on Jan 5, Pollack suggested he could also challenge the indictment on the basis that Maduro's capture may not have been legal.
Maduro, a socialist who had an antagonistic relationship with the United States while leading Venezuela from 2013 until his capture, referred to himself as a "prisoner of war" during his Jan 5 appearance.
Maduro has long accused the United States of seeking his ouster to gain greater control of the OPEC nation's vast oil reserves.
The United States has called Maduro a corrupt dictator whose mismanagement of the economy led to an economic collapse, and accused him of rigging his reelection votes in 2018 and 2024.
It stopped recognising him as Venezuela's legitimate president in 2019.
In an advisory opinion ahead of the January raid, the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel said it would be lawful for Trump to unilaterally order the operation because it served an important national interest and did not rise to the level of a war that would require congressional authorisation.
In Tuesday's filing, lawyers for both sides said Maduro could file a second round of legal motions by Jan 11, 2027, after prosecutors hand over any classified evidence for the defence's review.
Maduro was last in court on March 26 for a hearing over the US government's prohibition on Venezuela's government paying Maduro's legal fees.
The dispute was resolved a month later when the US government agreed to modify its financial sanctions on Venezuela to allow the government to pay the fees.
Venezuela has been run since Maduro's capture by his former Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, who has established closer ties with the Trump administration.
The United States has eased sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry, and foreign companies have expanded oil and gas projects in the country.
