Former Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro, who was captured from his home along with his wife by US officials and taken to New York, has proposed a June 2027 start to his criminal trial in the US, as per a report by Reuters. The US Justice Department prosecutors have also suggested the same date.
This comes as Maduro's case will be up for a hearing in the Manhattan federal court on Wednesday at 12 p.m. EDT (1600 GMT).
Alvin Hellerstein, the US District Judge, can fix a schedule for the case as early as Wednesday.
Both the defence and prosecution also proposed that apart from the June 2027 trial date, Maduro's side should file a motion to dismiss the case against him based on sovereign immunity by September, and that oral arguments in this regard be scheduled for the month of November. Other pretrial motions of the former Venezuela president would be due in January.
The case so far
Maduro and his wife. Cilia Flores, were captured from their home in Caracas in a nighttime raid by US Special Forces in January. They were then taken to New York to face charges, to which they have both pleaded not guilty.
In their filings, lawyers from both the defence and prosecution said that the first round of legal motions of Maduro to try to have his case dismissed would be due on 2 September. This would, in all probability, include a motion to dismiss the case against him based on the fact that he was the head of a sovereign state when he was captured by the US.
As per the filing, Maduro would then go on to file another round of legal motions by 11 January once prosecutors hand over any classified evidence for the review of the defense.
Maduro's relationship with Washington
Maduro, a socialist leader, has always had an antagonistic relationship with Washington as he led Venezuela from 2013 until his capture. He has referred to himself as a "prisoner of war" during his 5 January appearance. Maduro has long accused the United States of seeking his ouster to gain greater control of the country's vast oil reserves, which the US has now achieved.
The United States has been calling Maduro a corrupt dictator whose mismanagement of Venezuela's economy led to an economic collapse, and has accused him of rigging his reelection votes in 2018 and 2024. It stopped recognizing him as Venezuela's legitimate president in 2019. Maduro and Flores have been held in a federal jail in Brooklyn since they were taken to the US in January.
