Venezuela’s Maduro has been in a notorious Brooklyn jail for over 80 days. This is what life is like in there

By María Santana, CNN

(CNN) — As ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro prepares for his next court hearing in the US, his son is projecting an optimistic and defiant image of how his father and First Lady Cilia Flores are coping with life behind bars. However, people with access to the notorious Brooklyn jail where he is being held paint a less rosy picture of what life there is really like.

Maduro and Flores, who were transferred to New York in January after being captured by US forces in Venezuela, have pleaded not guilty to charges related to drug trafficking, money laundering and corruption.

Both are being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn, New York – a facility known both for its tough conditions and for having housed high profile inmates such as drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, the socialite and Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, and hip-hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs.

Venezuelan lawmaker Nicolás Maduro Guerra, known as “Nicolasito,” said Monday that his father remains “in high spirits” and “very strong,” that he exercises daily, and that he could reappear looking “thinner, more athletic.”

He referred to Flores as a “first combatant, firm and alert” in the face of legal challenges.

But life inside the federal detention facility is notoriously tough.

Days of isolation

For years, the jail has been criticized for its conditions, often described as dangerous and inhumane. Some lawyers and detainees have gone so far as to call it a “hell on earth,” citing unsanitary conditions, insecurity and prolonged isolation.

Someone like Maduro is likely to face even more restrictions than other inmates, as high-profile figures are often separated from the general population for security reasons.

“I would expect their routine to be 23 hours a day in solitary confinement,” explained Cameron Lindsay, a former director of the facility. That implies near-total confinement to a cell, meals delivered through a slot in the door, little or no contact with other inmates, and limited recreation, usually alone.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons did not confirm which specific unit he is in or give details about the conditions of his detention. However, experts and lawyers say prisoners of this profile are usually held in the Special Housing Unit.

“It’s the most restrictive level within the facility,” criminal and civil rights attorney Daniel McGuinness explained. There, detainees spend almost the entire day alone in their cells and, when they leave, they do so under strict supervision and with limited communication, according to Justice Department reports.

Although it may seem like a punishment, the point of this type of confinement is to protect the detainee and jail staff, according to the prisons bureau.

Separated from his wife

Even if he wasn’t in solitary confinement, Maduro would be unable to see his wife.

At this jail, men and women are housed in separate units, even if they’re married. Furthermore, in federal cases like this one, co-defendants are generally prohibited from communicating with each other.

Under the federal system, courts can impose “no contact” orders to prevent collusion, witness tampering, or interference in the judicial process.

This means that, even within the same detention center, Maduro and Flores probably cannot see each other or communicate directly, beyond possible controlled encounters in the presence of their lawyers.

Any other contact with the outside world is possible, but it is limited, monitored and subject to strict rules. Visits must be pre-approved, phone calls are brief – and for some, may be limited to one per month – and there is no free access to the internet.

Food complaints

Nicolás Maduro Guerra has attributed his father’s apparent weight loss to discipline and exercise.

But there’s another possible explanation: the quality of the food inside the center.

For years, lawyers have alleged that inmates receive expired, undercooked or contaminated food, including spoiled meat and deteriorated dairy products.

In a complaint filed in federal court in 2024, a detainee claimed to have received food, including beans, “infested with worms.” The same document indicates that, following the complaint, jail personnel identified the presence of weevils in a bag of beans.

In another court filing last year, the lawyer for music producer and entrepreneur Sean “Diddy” Combs, also a high-profile detainee at the jail, claimed that the center “routinely serves expired or worm-infested food,” noting that these were not isolated incidents but a pattern within the facility.

“From lack of medical care to serious sanitation problems, even worms in the food … everything that can be wrong is wrong at MDC,” said David Patton, former director of the organization Federal Defenders of New York.

Federal authorities have rejected some of these allegations, asserting that in certain cases there is “no evidence” of contaminated food. Even so, complaints persist.

Limited exercise

Maduro Guerra also claimed that his father exercises every day. That scenario, while possible, probably occurs within very strict limits.

According to reports from the Department of Justice, under restrictive conditions, the movements of detainees are limited, and human interaction is minimal.

In some cases, detainees are allowed out of their cells for up to one hour a day for recreation, but these activities are usually carried out in enclosed spaces or highly controlled areas that some lawyers and detainees have described as “open-air cages.”

In many cases, inmates’ exercise takes place inside the cell itself: push-ups, sit-ups or simply walking in circles.

Lawyers representing detainees at the jail say these physical routines not only help them stay in shape but also become one of the few ways to maintain control in an environment where almost everything is determined by others. It is, they say, a way to structure the day when time seems to stand still.

Reports and testimonies compiled by The Marshall Project indicate that, in the absence of adequate medical and mental health care, exercise becomes one of the few tools available to manage stress, anxiety and isolation.

A jail under constant scrutiny

The Metropolitan Detention Center is a large, industrial-style federal facility that, according to the prisons bureau, houses more than 1,300 detainees, and has been the subject of scandals and criticism for years.

It is dark, overcrowded and noisy, according to Elie Honig, a senior legal analyst for CNN, who has been inside the facility numerous times. While all prisons are miserable places, Honig said, “the MDC is perhaps the most miserable” of all he has visited.

Reports from the Department of Justice have documented problems with violence, weapons smuggling and frequent confinement. Some detainees have described the environment as dangerous, with incidents of assault and conditions that jeopardize their safety.

They have also identified specific shortcomings, including prolonged problems with heating and temperature control, cells with extreme cold or heat conditions, difficulties in ensuring adequate medical care, and limitations in access to visits and communication with lawyers during critical periods.

“The quality of medical and mental health services remains profoundly poor,” said civil rights attorney Katie Rosenfeld, who described the environment as truly horrific and difficult.

In response to these allegations, federal authorities insist that the situation has improved. In a 2024 report, the prisons bureau announced the implementation of an “Urgent Action Team” to address concerning conditions within the facility. The report also highlighted increases in correctional and medical staff, as well as reductions in violence.

However, lawyers and civil rights organizations argue that these improvements have not fundamentally changed the reality within the center, which remains under pressure due to insufficient staff operating safely and consistently.

The prisons bureau did not respond to a CNN request for comment on conditions at the MDC.

What to expect in the next hearing

Maduro and Flores’ next court appearance, scheduled for March 26, is expected to be a status hearing on the case’s progress, although there are still outstanding issues that the judge could address before or during that hearing. They include a dispute over how the defendants’ legal team will be funded amid sanctions-related restrictions and a decision on a protective order for the handling of evidence filed by the prosecution.

From Caracas, Maduro’s son describes it as a “procedural hearing,” in which they hope “to continue to elevate the truth of Venezuela and the innocence of Maduro and Cilia.”

Either way, the hearing will offer the public a first glimpse of Maduro and Flores since the pair’s detention and an opportunity to draw their own conclusions on how they are holding up.

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CNN’s Michael Rios contributed to this report.