U.S. prosecutors filed sweeping torture charges against former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, accusing them of running a brutal state-sponsored campaign that tortured American citizens and political opponents through beatings, electric shocks, and psychological abuse.
Americans Subjected to Electric Shocks and Beatings
The updated indictment filed in Manhattan federal court describes horrific treatment of at least three American victims. One American detainee endured electric shocks and was forced to eat his own vomit during eight months of imprisonment beginning in early 2022. Another victim suffered beatings severe enough to require hospitalization and had a gun forced into his mouth. A third American was handcuffed, hooded, and beaten every half hour for two days, resulting in permanent eye damage that continues today.
U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald called the allegations truly unthinkable and the epitome of corruption during a press conference outside the Manhattan courthouse. The charges add to existing drug trafficking accusations against Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, who were captured from their home in the capital city in January by U.S. military forces.
Dictator Allegedly Laughed at Torture Reports
The indictment alleges Maduro personally suggested torture methods, requested updates on specific victims, watched videos of forced confessions, and threatened to kill one prisoner’s child as psychological torture. Prosecutors claim he occasionally laughed after hearing reports about prisoner abuse. His wife Flores, a former attorney general, allegedly helped develop the repressive system and personally ordered torture of specific individuals according to court documents.
Defense attorney Barry Pollack stated Maduro denies all charges and looks forward to his day in court. Both defendants previously pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking charges and their lawyers argue they possess immunity as foreign leaders. Flores’s legal team unsuccessfully requested her release to house arrest Thursday citing medical concerns.
Torture Machine Built to Crush Opposition
The allegations span from 2013 when Maduro took power after his mentor Hugo Chavez died of cancer. As a former bus driver without military credentials, Maduro allegedly authorized the feared DGCIM military intelligence agency to use torture against military insiders and political opponents to prevent a potential coup. The victims include high-profile opposition figures who spent years in prison or died in custody under suspicious circumstances.
Sources
Nbcnews: U.S. indictment charges Maduro with overseeing machine of repression, torture of Americans
As long as the US are blindly supporting the Israeli regime, whose quite intentional cruelty is MUCH worse than that of any other present government in the world, better do not even try to get people excited about the methods of Maduro (whose methods are presumably not much worse than those of other Central and South American governments who are considered “friends of the USA”).