{
  "id": 12903113,
  "title": "Electric shocks, beatings: Maduro and wife accused of torture conspiracy",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/electric-shocks-beatings-maduro-and-wife-accused-of-torture-conspiracy",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-08T16:18:42.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Sydney Morning Herald",
    "slug": "the-sydney-morning-herald",
    "url": "https://www.smh.com.au/world/south-america/electric-shocks-beatings-maduro-and-wife-accused-of-torture-conspiracy-20261009-p6142o.html?ref=rss"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Nicolás Maduro, the former president of Venezuela, and his wife Cilia Flores have been in custody in New York since January, facing drug trafficking charges. They now also face allegations of human rights abuses, specifically a conspiracy to commit torture.\n\nThe US authorities have accused them of presiding over a system of repression that relied on violence against the political opposition, arbitrary detention, and torture of detainees, including US citizens. The alleged torture methods included electric shock, asphyxiation, rape, forced nudity, prolonged isolation, starvation, punishment cells, and psychological torture, according to the BBC News.\n\nMaduro and Flores were taken into custody by US forces in a pre-dawn raid on their Caracas home in January. They are being held in a detention centre in Brooklyn. The new charges are in addition to the existing drug-trafficking and weapons charges they have denied.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 14,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Guardian US",
        "title": "Nicolás Maduro’s wife to appear in court to push for release from New York jail",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/nicolas-maduros-wife-to-appear-in-court-to-push-for-release-from-new",
        "published": "2026-10-08T11:46:58.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "CBC News",
        "title": "Ousted Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, wife Celia Flores charged with torture in new indictment",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/ousted-venezuelan-president-nicolas-maduro-wife-celia-flores-charged",
        "published": "2026-10-08T14:49:13.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Fortune",
        "title": "Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro faces new U.S. torture charges after 9 months in a New York jail",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/former-venezuelan-president-nicolas-maduro-faces-new-u-s-torture",
        "published": "2026-10-08T15:09:02.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Gulf News",
        "title": "US charges former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro with torture",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/us-charges-former-venezuelan-president-nicolas-maduro-with-torture",
        "published": "2026-10-08T15:19:28.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Al Jazeera",
        "title": "Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro and his wife charged over torture allegations",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/venezuelas-nicolas-maduro-and-his-wife-charged-over-torture",
        "published": "2026-10-08T15:20:39.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "BBC World",
        "title": "Venezuela's ex-leader Nicolás Maduro charged with conspiracy to commit torture",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/venezuelas-ex-leader-nicolas-maduro-charged-with-conspiracy-to-commit",
        "published": "2026-10-08T15:43:14.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "ABC News AU",
        "title": "Maduro and wife Flores face new charge of conspiracy to commit torture",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/maduro-and-wife-flores-face-new-charge-of-conspiracy-to-commit-torture",
        "published": "2026-10-08T15:50:03.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "NPR",
        "title": "New U.S. indictment charges former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro with torture",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/new-u-s-indictment-charges-former-venezuelan-president-nicolas-maduro",
        "published": "2026-10-08T16:05:37.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "CBS News",
        "title": "Nicolas Maduro, wife face torture charge in new U.S. indictment",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/nicolas-maduro-wife-face-torture-charge-in-new-u-s-indictment",
        "published": "2026-10-08T16:07:56.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Age",
        "title": "Electric shocks, beatings: Maduro and wife accused of torture conspiracy",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/electric-shocks-beatings-maduro-and-wife-accused-of-torture-conspiracy-12903133",
        "published": "2026-10-08T16:18:42.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Euronews",
        "title": "US charges former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro with torture",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/us-charges-former-venezuelan-president-nicolas-maduro-with-torture-12907253",
        "published": "2026-10-08T16:20:27.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "MyJoyOnline Ghana",
        "title": "Venezuela’s ex-leader Nicolás Maduro charged with conspiracy to commit torture",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/venezuelas-ex-leader-nicolas-maduro-charged-with-conspiracy-to-commit-12907826",
        "published": "2026-10-08T16:28:13.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "People Daily Kenya",
        "title": "Venezuela’s ex-leader Nicolás Maduro charged with conspiracy to commit torture",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/08/venezuelas-ex-leader-nicolas-maduro-charged-with-conspiracy-to-commit",
        "published": "2026-10-08T16:55:41.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}