As Maduro got out of his chair to leave, a man in the audience stood up and began speaking forcefully at him in Spanish, blasting him as an “illegitimate” president.
The man later said that he had been imprisoned by the Venezuelan regime.
As deputy U.S. Marshals led Maduro from the courtroom, he looked directly at the man and shot back in Spanish, “I am a kidnapped president. I am a prisoner of war.”
Maduro, who also wished reporters “Happy New Year” in court, and his wife pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and weapons charges in Manhattan federal court.