Cilia Flores, wife of Nicolás Maduro, asks US judge for house arrest over heart problems
In short
Lawyers for Cilia Flores, the wife of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, are asking a federal judge in New York to release her from a Brooklyn jail to house arrest, saying her heart condition has worsened and she has lost 25 pounds. Prosecutors oppose the request, and a hearing was set for Thursday.
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Lawyers for Cilia Flores, the wife of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, have asked a federal judge in New York to release her from jail and place her under house arrest because of heart problems. US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, 92, who is overseeing the case against Maduro and Flores, scheduled a hearing on the request for Thursday, Business Insider reported. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Her lawyers say Flores, 69, has lost 25 pounds while held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn and that her heart condition has worsened. According to AP, they said she suffers from "lingering lightheadedness, dizziness and shortness of breath," might have had a minor heart attack in July, and has been told she might need heart surgery. Business Insider reported that jail doctors have recommended a cardiac catheterization, a diagnostic procedure, and that she has lost two teeth. AP also reported her lawyers said she suffered permanent scarring when she was "thrown against a wall or dresser" during the US military action that led to her capture. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
The lawyers propose that she live at a residence under 24-hour guard; Business Insider reported the plan involves armed security teams at a private home whose location is not disclosed in public court filings. A person who has spoken with Flores told Business Insider she has been happy with her medical care in jail but is afraid of waking from anesthesia handcuffed to a bed or surrounded by other inmates. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Prosecutors oppose the request. AP reported they wrote that Flores would pose an "extreme risk of flight and danger to the public" if released, and that she has been taken to a local hospital when care was needed. Business Insider reported prosecutors did not dispute her health issues but said she refused doctor-recommended diagnostic tests unless released, and so "effectively created a medical hardship that she now relies on to seek release." [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Maduro and Flores have been held in New York since early January, when forces seized them from their Caracas home in a night raid, AP reported. Both have pleaded not guilty in a case first brought six years ago and face potential life sentences if convicted of a conspiracy to send cocaine into the US. Their lawyers have asked for the case to be dismissed on the grounds of immunity as a foreign leader and first lady. President Donald Trump's administration has called the raid a "surgical law enforcement operation," while Maduro has called his capture a kidnapping. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Why it matters
The ruling will decide whether Flores, who faces a possible life sentence on cocaine conspiracy charges, stays in jail before trial. Business Insider noted that release could mean the federal government would no longer have direct oversight of every aspect of her life. The case against Maduro and Flores follows their capture in a raid on their Caracas home in January.
Key facts
- Cilia Flores, 69, is held at a jail in Brooklyn while awaiting trial alongside her husband, former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Her lawyers asked a federal judge to release her to house arrest at a residence under 24-hour guard, citing heart problems. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Her lawyers say she has lost 25 pounds in jail. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Prosecutors oppose her release. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Prosecutors wrote that Flores would pose an "extreme risk of flight and danger to the public" if released. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, 92, scheduled a hearing on the request for Thursday. [ 1 ]
- Maduro and Flores have pleaded not guilty and face potential life sentences if convicted of a conspiracy to send cocaine into the US. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- The couple have been held in New York since early January, when forces seized them from their Caracas home in a night raid. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Flores's lawyers are seeking her release from jail to house arrest because of heart problems. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Her lawyers say she has lost 25 pounds while held at the Brooklyn jail. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Prosecutors oppose her release. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- A court hearing on the request was set for Thursday. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- Flores, 69, faces drug-trafficking charges alongside Maduro. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
Still unclear
- What procedure Flores needs: Business Insider describes a recommended cardiac catheterization, a diagnostic procedure, while AP reports her lawyers said she has been told she might need heart surgery. The outlets describe the recommended treatment differently.
- Whether Flores suffered a minor heart attack in July. Her lawyers say she might have; no outlet reports confirmation.
- Prosecutors' claim that Flores refused doctor-recommended diagnostic tests unless released. Reported only by Business Insider, citing the prosecution.
- Where Flores would live if released. Business Insider reported the proposed location is not disclosed in public court filings.
- Flores has lost two teeth. Reported only by Business Insider.