Deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro told a New York court on Monday he was innocent and an upright person as he and his wife entered pleas of not guilty on charges of narcoterrorism and possession of illegal weapons after being forcibly taken into US custody following a US strike on his Caracas compound 60 hours earlier.
During the brief hearing where the charges were read out and pleas entered, Maduro, 63, took notes, asked the judge to allow him to hold on to them and opted not to ask for bail before returning to a detention facility in the nearby borough of Brooklyn. The couple’s next hearing is set for March 17.
“I’m innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the president of my country,” Maduro told a judge, according to media in the courtroom, before the judge cut him off, indicating there would be time for lengthy statements later.
His wife, Cilia Flores, identified herself as Venezuela’s “first lady” before being similarly reined in by Judge Alvin Hellerstein.
In response to the judge’s questioning, Maduro and Flores said they would welcome visits by Venezuelan consulate officials.
Legal analysts said the couple’s effort on Monday to highlight their official positions suggested a future line of defence built around the argument that the US does not have jurisdiction over foreign heads of state abroad.