Maduro erupts and tells decide he was ‘kidnapped’ whereas spouse Cilia exhibits off head accidents in first court docket look: Live updates

Nicolas Maduro entered a not guilty plea after asking to read the federal indictment himself in a New York courtroom on Monday.

‘I’m innocent. I’m not guilty. I am a decent man,’ Maduro said, according to court reporters.

Maduro told New York federal judge Alvin K. Hellerstein it was the ‘very first time’ he had seen the indictment and that he ‘would rather read it personally.’

He proceeded to declare to the judge that he was ‘kidnapped’ from his home, according to court reporters.

When asked by Hellerstein to identify himself, Maduro responded that he is the president of Venezuela and was he was ‘captured at my home in Caracas Venezuela.’

Lawyers for Nicolas Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, told CBS News that she is ‘in good spirits.’

‘[The] first lady is aware that there is a long road ahead and is prepared,’ Mark E. Donnelly said.

‘We look forward to reviewing and challenging the evidence the government has. While we would love to present our side now, we will wait to do so in court at the appropriate time.’

Delcy Rodriguez, Nicolas Maduro’s vice president, has been sworn in as Venezuela’s new interim leader.

‘I come with sorrow for the suffering inflicted upon the Venezuelan people following an illegitimate military aggression against our homeland,’ she said while being sworn in by her brother, National Assembly leader Jorge Rodriguez.

‘I come with sorrow for the kidnapping of two heroes.’

Nicolas Maduro’s son, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, who was also indicted in the United States along with his father and stepmother, spoke out during the installation session of the National Assembly of Venezuela on Monday.

‘If we normalize the kidnapping of a head of state, no country is safe. Today, it’s Venezuela; tomorrow, it could be any nation that refuses to submit. This is not a regional problem, it is a direct threat to global stability, to humanity and to the sovereign equality of nations,’ he said.

‘People of the world, I say to you: international solidarity with Nicolás, with Cilia, with Venezuela, is not an optional political gesture; it is an ethical and legal duty. Silence in the face of these violations implicates those who remain silent and weakens the international system that everyone claims to defend.’

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, left, and his wife, Cilia Flores, second from right, appear in Manhattan federal court with their defense attorneys Mark Donnelly and Barry Pollack on Monday.

Cilia was seen to have several bandages across her face, allegedly as a result of the Delta Force operation in Caracas. Her attorneys claimed she may be injured elsewhere, including bruising to her ribs.

Maduro’s attorney said that the Venezuelan president would need to undergo a physical evaluation as a result of his own injuries sustained in his ‘abduction.’

The US Department of State took to X to declare ‘This is OUR Hemisphere,’ following Nicolas Maduro’s arrest and arraignment.

‘President Trump will not allow our security to be threatened.’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined multiple news programs on January 4 to discuss the operation that apprehended Maduro in his home on Saturday night.

‘This is the Western Hemisphere. This is where we live — and we’re not going to allow the Western Hemisphere to be a base of operation for adversaries, competitors, and rivals of the United States,’ he said.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s attorney Barry Pollack was seen leaving the Manhattan courthouse after his client’s arraignment on Monday.

When asked his thoughts on Maduro’s claim that he was ‘kidnapped’ from his home in Caracas, Pollack replied: ‘I think what President Maduro said in court speaks for itself.’

Nicolas Maduro was seen wearing a blindfold, ear defenders and a Nike Tech tracksuit hours after he was captured from his home in Venezuela.

While it’s not clear whether Maduro was captured wearing the tracksuit or whether he was given it by US forces, he triggered a near-total sell out of the colorway on the US Nike website within hours of the photograph’s release, Polymarket found.

As Nicolas Maduro was leaving court, a man in the audience reportedly told him, ‘You will pay on behalf of Venezuela.’

Maduro replied, ‘In the name of god, I will be free.’

Nicolas Maduro’s lawyer, Barry Pollack, called the Venezuelan president’s capture a ‘military abduction.’

While noting concerns about Maduro’s role as the head of a sovereign state, Pollack said, ‘There are questions about the legality of his military abduction.’

Nicolas Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, wore a bandage on her forehead and had bruising on her right eye as she appeared in court.

She reportedly is suffering bruising on her ribs.

Court reporters noted that she held on to a US marshal for support as she stood up to enter her not guilty plea.