Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro (now under US custody) pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and other charges at a defiant appearance in a New York court Monday, two days after being snatched by US forces in a stunning raid on his home in Caracas. Maduro, 63, told a federal judge in Manhattan "I'm innocent. I'm not guilty." Smiling as he entered the courtroom and wearing an orange shirt with beige trousers, Maduro spoke softly.
"I'm president of the Republic of Venezuela and I'm here kidnapped since January 3, Saturday," Maduro told the court, speaking in Spanish through an interpreter. "I was captured at my home in Caracas, Venezuela."
But the man who ruled his oil-rich country with an iron fist for more than 12 years got a sharp reminder of his fall when the judge told him to stick to simply stating his name.
Maduro's wife Cilia Flores likewise pleaded not guilty. The judge ordered both to remain behind bars and set a new hearing date of March 17.
PT/ra
