Alvin Hellerstein, the US federal judge handling the case against Venezuela’s ousted president Nicolás Maduro, has died at 92, the federal court for the Southern District of New York confirmed, according to Le Monde.

Maduro’s trial had been due to open on July 1, 2027. Hellerstein was one of the oldest US federal judges, and questions had been raised about whether he was the right judge to preside over what could be a prolonged trial of Maduro on drug-trafficking charges, according to the South China Morning Post.