US federal prosecutors are advancing narco-terrorism and drug-trafficking charges against ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in the Southern District of New York, with a June 2027 trial date set after his January 2026 capture. Defense motions asserting head-of-state immunity and challenging jurisdiction remain pending, with oral arguments scheduled for November 2026 and government opposition filed asserting that the alleged conduct falls outside protected official acts. This legal uncertainty, combined with the interim Venezuelan government's ongoing diplomatic engagement with Washington and the absence of a conviction to date, underpins trader consensus favoring no prison time as the leading outcome. If the case proceeds to verdict, the multi-count indictment carries potential sentences of decades or life, though acquittal or pretrial dismissal would avoid incarceration entirely.