After a lengthy battle in the courts, the United States has agreed to allow the Venezuelan government to pay the legal fees for Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
In a letter filed on Friday to Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said this would only be allowed under certain conditions. These are that the Venezuelan government uses funds made available to it after March 5, 2026, and that the payments cannot be derived from restricted funds, as described in a January executive order.
Maduro and his wife were taken from their home in January by U.S. military forces and arrested. They pleaded not guilty to charges against them, including narco-terrorism and drug trafficking.
U.S. sanctions initially prevented Maduro’s legal team from getting money from the Venezuelan government. Both of their lawyers have said they don’t have the money to pay the legal fees themselves.
Maduro’s lawyer, Barry Pollack, previously said in court that his defendant has a right, not just to competent counsel, “but counsel of his choice, and the right to use untainted funds for that purpose.”
A federal prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Wirshba, argued at a hearing last month that giving Maduro and Flores access to these funds would “undermine” sanctions.
Hellerstein pointed out at the hearing that the U.S. had relaxed sanctions on Venezuela since Maduro was removed from office following his capture.
Clayton said in his Friday filing that the U.S. Treasury Department has issued amended licenses to counsel for Venezuela’s former first couple.
Now, Clayton said, the prosecution and defense are requesting the court schedule a status conference in 60 days, pausing the ticking clock on a speedy trial, so the U.S. government can produce discovery and the defense can review it.
“Counsel for both defendants have informed the Government that they consent to the foregoing requests,” Clayton said.
Maduro and Flores are being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn as the case plays out.
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