OFAC approved the use of Venezuelan funds for the defense of President Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores

Published at: 25/04/2026 02:39 PM

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) authorized the use of resources linked to the Venezuelan State to finance their legal defense of the constitutional president of the Republic, Nicolás Maduro, and the first lady and deputy, Cilia Flores, during the judicial process they are facing in New York.

According to Venezolana de Televisión (VTV), the decision of Judge Alvin Hellerstein, of the Southern District Court of New York, comes after the private lawyers of both abandoned the case because they could not access their fees, due to the blockade of Venezuelan assets.

During the trial, the defense argued that economic sanctions prevented the full exercise of the right to defense, enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. For their part, prosecutors defended the legality of the restrictions, in the midst of litigation that highlighted tensions between unilateral coercive measures and judicial guarantees.

Faced with the expiration of legal deadlines, the court decided to guarantee the representation of the defendants, to allow the use of resources linked to Venezuela, in what analysts interpret as a contradiction within the sanctions system itself.

Mazo News Team