US Grants Maduro Access to Funds for Defense in Criminal Case

US officials reversed themselves and will now allow Nicolás Maduro and his wife to pay lawyers with Venezuelan funds as they defend themselves in the drug-trafficking case against them in New York.

The reversal clears a roadblock that had stalled the prosecution of the former Venezuelan president and his wife, Cilia Flores, who were captured in early January in a raid of their home in Caracas and brought to the US.

US officials barred them from using Venezuelan funds to pay for their defense, arguing it would undermine sanctions against the country.

The couple claimed that this infringed on ...