NEW YORK CITY — Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have added a conspiracy-to-commit-torture charge against former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, accusing the couple of presiding over a system that tortured detainees, including American citizens.

The superseding indictment, filed Thursday in the Southern District of New York, adds a new front to a case that until now centered on drugs and weapons.

The roughly 30-page indictment says the Maduro government “presided over a system of repression” that used the military, intelligence agencies and security forces against political opponents, per reporting by CBS News.

Prosecutors list electric shock, asphyxiation, rape, forced nudity, prolonged isolation, starvation, punishment cells and psychological torture, including threats against detainees’ families. FBI Director Kash Patel said more than a dozen American citizens were subjected to torture.

The indictment describes specific incidents. One American was allegedly beaten and tortured in 2023. Another, accused of plotting to kill Maduro, was allegedly given electric shocks to the torso and genitals and injected with a substance that caused seizures in 2022.

He spent eight and a half months at the Boleíta Norte prison and was returned to the United States in October 2022, according to reports.

The filing also alleges that in 2014 Maduro proposed abducting and torturing officers suspected of disloyalty and that Flores agreed.

Prosecutors quote Maduro as telling officials to “squeeze them harder.” An unnamed co-conspirator identified only as “CC-3” is described as watching one of the alleged victims being electrocuted.

The count joins existing charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine-importation conspiracy and machine-gun and destructive-device offenses. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty.

The maximum penalty for conspiracy to commit torture is 20 years, or life if a victim died.

The first change is the nature of the case. The original 2020 indictment, unsealed in expanded form after U.S. forces seized Maduro in Caracas on Jan. 3, was a drug case. The torture count has American victims and could put former detainees on the witness stand.

That reframes the prosecution as a case about the treatment of Americans, not only about cocaine, and it gives prosecutors a story that jurors can grasp more easily than a drug-trafficking conspiracy. The trial schedule already includes a March 11, 2027 deadline for briefing on classified evidence.

The second change is legal. The federal torture statute complicates the immunity fight. It defines torture as an act committed “under color of law,” so prosecutors must show the defendants acted through the machinery of the Venezuelan state.

Maduro’s lawyers argue he is shielded by head-of-state and official-acts immunity.

Prosecutors, in their October 2 filing, argued that Washington has not recognized Maduro as president since 2019 and that drug trafficking was not an official act. A torture charge that rests on state power creates a tension the defense may try to exploit. It can argue that the charge itself describes official acts. Prosecutors can answer that Congress wrote the torture statute to reach officials and that Washington’s non-recognition ends the head-of-state question.

The statute also reaches offenders present in the United States regardless of nationality, which would cover defendants brought here.

Maduro filed his dismissal motion on September 2. Defense replies are due October 16, and oral argument before Judge Alvin Hellerstein is set for November 17, with a second round of motions due January 11, 2027.

Trial is scheduled for June 1, 2027. A new count typically requires an arraignment and may prompt additional motions, though reports do not say whether the trial date will move.

The case also lost Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Richman, who left the office on Sept. 25 after working on it since 2020.

Maduro’s lawyers note that Washington now recognizes acting president Delcy Rodríguez, a point they say distinguishes the case from Manuel Noriega’s, where U.S. courts deferred to the executive and rejected a head-of-state claim. That precedent is the government’s main authority.

Flores’s position

Flores faces the same new charge as her husband. Her attorneys sought house arrest, and prosecutors have opposed it, calling her an “extreme flight risk.” A hearing was scheduled for October 8.

CBS reported that a judge denied bail and said “the evidence is strong, very strong,” while others reported that Hellerstein denied her request for home confinement with GPS monitoring.

A torture count raises the stakes on that argument. The alleged 2014 agreement is the main factual link prosecutors cite between Flores and the torture conspiracy.

What’s in Play

Four paths look most plausible. The court could reject immunity after the November 17 hearing, keeping the June 2027 trial on track. The defense could appeal an adverse ruling, thereby delaying trial.

The new count could increase pressure for a plea, particularly for Flores, since added exposure and American witnesses strengthen the government’s hand. Or a ruling for the defense could dismiss counts, which would be a major surprise.

Cooperation by Venezuelan officials also matters, because “CC-3” and others remain unidentified, and the acting government’s attitude toward the case is unclear.