Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores are being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn, New York. The facility is known for its harsh conditions and for housing high-profile inmates such as Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell and hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs.
“I think their daily routine will be 23 hours a day in solitary confinement,” explained Cameron Lindsay, the facility’s former warden. This means being confined almost entirely to solitary confinement, with meals delivered through a crack in the door, little to no contact with other inmates, and limited entertainment, usually alone.
Hell on Earth: Inside Maduro’s prison
Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who until just a few days ago was living in the presidential palace in Caracas, is currently being held in Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center, one of the most notorious federal prisons in the United States. CNN Senior Legal Analyst Ellie Honig looks back at the history of MDC, a facility widely described as “Hell on Earth.”
The Federal Bureau of Prisons has not confirmed which unit he works for or provided details about the circumstances of his detention. But experts and lawyers say prisoners with this profile are usually housed in special housing units. “This is the most restrictive level in the facility,” explained criminal and civil rights attorney Daniel McGuinness. Even if he were not in solitary confinement, Maduro would not be able to see his wife.
Venezuelan lawmaker Nicolás Maduro Guerra said on Monday that his father remains “in good spirits” and “very strong”, exercises every day and could return to look “leaner and more athletic.” But there is another possible explanation. It’s the quality of the food inside the center. Lawyers have long argued that inmates receive expired, undercooked or contaminated food, including rotting meat and spoiled dairy products.
The Metropolitan Detention Center is dark, overcrowded and noisy, said CNN senior legal analyst Ellie Honig, who has been inside the facility many times.
