Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro and wife Cilia Flores deny US torture charges as 'false accusations'

Ousted Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pleaded not guilty Thursday to new torture charges brought against the pair held in US custody since their extraordinary capture in January. They appeared at a New York court after prosecutors alleged they conspired to commit acts including waterboardings, rapes and beatings against victims, including American citizens, in Venezuelan detention. Maduro, who has previously called himself a "prisoner of war," slammed the latest charges as "false accusations" during a 35-minute hearing. Asked by the judge how he pleaded to the indictment against him, the 63-year-old responded, "I reject this document in its entirety." Read moreUS files new torture charges against Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro and wife Cilia Flores Flores, who wore the same brown prison jumpsuit as Maduro, said: "I am completely innocent, I am not guilty." According to prosecutors, the couple used torture to "intimidate, harass, and neutralize their opponents, including through kidnappings." Maduro "presided over" a system of repression and torture, while Flores helped him to develop it, according to a charging document. In one 2022 instance, Venezuelan a...