Help 12 Venezuelans tortured for 4 months in CECOT, get back on their feet.
In March, 252 Venezuelans immigrants were disappeared by the US to the inhumane CECOT prison in El Salvador, 90% of whom never committed a crime, but were still accused of being gang members. After 125 days of torture, they were released in a prisoner swap back to Venezuela, many of whom fled Venezuela from gang and regime violence. They are now trying to rebuild their lives.
I wish there was a way to help all of them, but with the help of Andry Hernandez Romero "the gay stylist", he has helped identify 12 of them from his home State of Tachira. They are all facing poverty, suffer from PTSD, and with little or no means of support. The funds will be distributed evenly between all 12 survivors through a trusted intermediary in Venezuela.
For those unfamiliar with Venezuela, it has a failed economy, under US sanctions, with high rate of poverty, and in some areas, the only means of support is informal labor: cutting hair, street vending, food delivery, transportation, construction, etc. Most of these need some time and help with a minimal start up investment. Some also need medical care or help with ailing family members. Read their stories below.
Carlos Alexis Uzcategui Vielma: Entered the US with the CPB One app and at his scheduled interview was accused of being a gang member because of his tattoos. He was put into detention in the US for 4 months before being sent to CECOT in El Salvador. He was physically and emotionally tortured, they pulled out several toenails, and dislocated his shoulder. He contracted pneumonia which was never treated and was regularly beaten. He now hopes to receive funding for medical attention and to start a business to support his family.
Gustavo Adolfo Aguilera Agüero: Entered the US with his wife and son with the CPB One app in 2023. His wife was expecting and soon had a US born child. He and his wife Susej received work permits. He worked installing gutters while she took care of children. In February, he was detained taking the garbage out. Authorities were looking for someone else. Because of his tattoos, he was accused of being a gang member and sent to CECOT. On the first day he was beaten by a guard in the face which broke his nose, which took days to stop bleeding and still gives him pain today. His wife and children returned to Venezuela, but is trying to find a way to support them.
Edicson Quintero: Entered the US border and surrendered to Border security for asylum. They held him in the Stewart Detention Center for 8 months without bond. He filed a habeas petition to get parole, but instead of responding, DHS sent him to CECOT. His lawyers continued his petition on the basis that the US was contracting El Salvador to imprison him. After 125, he was returned to Venezuela on the prisoners swap agreement and they dropped his petition.
Luis Edixon Chacon Gomez: He came to the US with his wife and 3 kids. Like the others Luis suffered the same physical and psychological abuse of the other Venezuelans, and now recognizes he suffers from PTSD and fracture on right leg from multiple beatings. Besides being unemployed, he has his family to support. His greatest hope is to gather the resources to help his family return to Venezuela who are now stuck in the US.
Wilmer Sandia: My experience in El Salvador at the CECOT was tough, with the abuse and torture we endured daily. These were moments of agony and left us with physical, psychological, and emotional damage. We want justice to be done for everything we went through. As for the help I need, it's to be able to pay off the debt on the house where my parents live, since they are elderly. I'm an only child, and my mother suffers from terminal cancer, and my father had a stroke. The situation is tough. I don't have a steady job, and I must comply with the treatments and nutrition. May God bless you in advance.
Jorge Luis Guerrero: I suffered a lot of cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment; we endured constant torture, psychological damage, verbal abuse, inadequate medical care, poor nutrition, contaminated water, and more. Among my current needs is the lack of employment to buy things like shoes, clothing, and personal belongings, since we arrived in our country with nothing. I also need an evaluation by an ear, nose, and throat specialist. I would also like to start my own business to help my mother.
Kevin Johan Nieto Contreras: We suffer constant torture, psychological damage, verbal abuse, lack of medical care, poor nutrition, contaminated water, among other things. Among my current needs is the lack of employment to buy things like shoes, clothes, and personal belongings, since we arrived in our country with nothing. I also need a medical evaluation because through all of this, my kidneys are failing. I would also like to start my own business to help my family.
William Ramón Lozada Sánchez: Since I couldn't get a CBP One appointment, I decided to turn myself in to immigration enforcement in the United States and was detained immediately and I was held for 14 months, being moved to different detention centers. Then in CECOT, I endured four months of daily torture from the moment I entered. The truth is, I thought this nightmare would never end. They severely beat one of my teeth. With so much humidity, I now have black spots on my lungs, which they told me could be tuberculosis. I have cracked ribs. The ligaments in my knee are torn from the blows. I have a kidney and colon infection. I have a lot of difficulty functioning in crowds. I require medical and psychological attention to overcome the nightmares I frequently have.
Andres Guillermo Morales Rolón: I experienced multiple tortures and human rights violations. Because of which, I have ongoing trauma from the experience. In addition to not having a base or employment to fit back into our society. I am the breadwinner of my family, of which my wife and stepdaughters depend on me.
Orlando Jesús Testa León: I am one of the 252 Venezuelans who were kidnapped in El Salvador for no reason. Thank god, we are now out although I lost everything. I am the father of three children, I have a wife and my mother has hip deterioration and needs a wheelchair, which I cannot provide, since I do not have a job. I need medical attention for my spine and vision problem with partial blindness. I would just like some help so I can start my own business and to support my family. Thank you from all my heart. God bless you.
Widmer Josneyder Agelviz Sanguino: I was entering the United States as a refugee for resettlement when I was detained and separated from my family. I was detained solely for being Venezuelan and having a tattoo, without even having a criminal record or any other problems. I was detained for six months in the United States in Texas and four months and two days in El Salvador. I would like support so I can start my barbershop business, since that is my dedication and my dream.
Andry José Hernández Romero: We endured daily physical and psychological aggression, as well I was sexually abused by the CECOT guards which was the most unpleasant and traumatic moment of my life. Now that I am free it has been very difficult to recover from the various psychological damages and traumas, fear, insomnia, anxiety, all the damage that was caused to us that have left marks on our bodies and our hearts, causing not only emotional and physical damage but also economic since we arrived without any money, without clothes and It has been difficult to resume our lives. As survivors of this terrible situation, finding decent work is very difficult due to the social labeling and criticism, comments on social media, a situation that the Trump administration has caused by leaving this bad reputation linked without evidence to a criminal gang and arguing that we are terrorists and criminals without the right to a defense and without having evidence against us.