Maduro, his wife plead not guilty to federal conspiracy, drugs, weapons charges

( Just the News )

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, pleaded not guilty on Monday to federal conspiracy, drugs, and weapons charges in a federal courthouse in Manhattan.

After a summary of the charging documents against him was read, Maduro said in Spanish when asked by Judge Alvin Hellerstein how he would plead, "I am not guilty," NBC News reported.

"I am a decent man. I am still the president of my country," he added.

When Flores was asked by the judge for her plea, she said in Spanish, "Not guilty, completely innocent."

Maduro and Flores were captured by U.S. military and law enforcement late Friday at the secured compound on a military base in Caracus and taken to New York to face the charges. 

The charges in the Justice Department's four-count indictment are: 

Count One: Narco-terrorism conspiracy – Includes Maduro and Flores.

Count Two: Conspiracy to import cocaine – Includes Maduro and Flores.

Count Three: Possession of machine guns and destructive devices – Includes Maduro and Flores.

Count Four: Conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices – Includes Maduro and Flores.

Others charged in the indictment include Diosdado Cabello, Ramón Rodríguez Chacín, Ernesto Maduro Guerra, and Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero, known as Niño Guerrero, according to news reports.