The United States has filed new torture charges against ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, adding to the criminal case against the couple, who are being held in US custody.
According to AFP, citing a revised indictment released on Thursday, US prosecutors have accused Maduro and Flores of conspiring to torture political opponents and US citizens. The new allegation comes on top of existing drug-trafficking and firearms charges against the couple.
Maduro and Flores have denied the earlier charges. The revised indictment alleges that torture and other human rights violations were part of a broader effort to retain political power during Maduro's 13-year rule over Venezuela.
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DW reported that the US prosecutors allege that Maduro authorised the use of torture against specific individuals and oversaw a system involving torture, arbitrary detention and violence aimed at suppressing political opposition.
The allegations include the use of electric shocks, beatings and asphyxiation, according to the indictment cited by AFP.
The latest charge marks a significant escalation in the US criminal case against the former Venezuelan leader. Human rights organisations have for years accused Venezuelan authorities of widespread abuses against detainees and political opponents.
Flores, 69, is scheduled to appear before a federal judge in Manhattan on Thursday, where her lawyers are expected to seek her release from custody and placement under house arrest.
Her legal team has cited health concerns, saying she has lost around 25 pounds (11.4 kg) since being detained. They have also claimed she has suffered dizziness and shortness of breath and may have experienced a minor heart attack in July.
Flores' lawyers have proposed that she remain at a New York residence under round-the-clock security.
Prosecutors have opposed the request, arguing that Flores presents an extreme risk of flight and danger to the public. They maintain that she has received medical treatment, including hospital care, whenever necessary.
Maduro, 63, and Flores are being held at a federal detention facility in Brooklyn and are scheduled to face trial in June next year.
The couple was captured during a US operation at their Caracas home on January 3 and subsequently transferred to New York. US President Donald Trump described the raid as a surgical law enforcement operation.
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Maduro has denied wrongdoing and has described himself as a prisoner of war, calling his capture a kidnapping. Critics of the US operation have questioned its legality under international law.
DW reported that the latest charges add another layer to the legal battle surrounding Maduro, whose government had remained at the centre of tensions between Washington and Caracas for years.
In August, Trump also announced that the US had reached an agreement to take control of part of Venezuela's vast oil reserves. Venezuelan Interim President Delcy Rodriguez described the agreement as historic. The new torture allegations are accusations contained in the US indictment and have not been established in court.
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