Exiled jurists launch graft trial against Venezuela's Maduro

BOGOTA, Colombia – Venezuelan jurists who fled their homeland say they will try Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on allegations of corruption and money laundering, based on evidence suggesting he may have sought bribes from the Brazilian construction giant at the center of a regional corruption scandal.

The panel calls itself Venezuela's "Supreme Court in Exile" and is made up of judges who were appointed to their country's high court last year by the opposition-controlled congress but fled after Maduro accused them of treason.

The judges met in Colombia's capital Monday to start a symbolic trial for Maduro at which they also called for his arrest.

Maduro does not recognize the exiled judges and says they are trying to illegally replace Venezuela's current Supreme Court, which was appointed by his allies.