Venezuelans Say They Were Beaten And Sexually Assaulted While Detained At Notorious Cecot

Three Venezuelan men told NBC News they knowledgeable beingness and psychological torture, including 1 man’s allegation that he was sexually assaulted, aft nan Trump management sent them to a notorious situation successful El Salvador.

The men were held for 4 months successful nan Terrorism Confinement Center, aliases CECOT, a Salvadoran megaprison known for its harsh conditions and reported abuse. The allegations included beatings that near bruises and cuts, psychological maltreatment and nan denial of necessities specified arsenic nutrient aliases bath access.

The Trump management sent astir 250 Venezuelan men to CECOT successful March and has accused them of being members of nan Tren de Aragua gang. Many of nan men and immoderate of their families and attorneys person denied nan claim. The men were released and flown to Venezuela connected July 18 arsenic portion of a captive switch pinch nan United States.

Andry Hernandez Romero, a 32-year-old cheery asylum-seeker from Venezuela, told NBC News that 1 time during his imprisonment he was taken to solitary confinement, wherever situation unit “made maine kneel, execute oral activity connected 1 person, while nan others groped maine and touched my backstage parts” and “stroked maine pinch their batons.”

He said he could not place nan guards because their faces were covered and nan room did not person a lightbulb, pinch only a mini magnitude of ray coming successful done a spread successful nan ceiling.

Hernandez said nan incident near him devastated.

“I didn’t want to eat. I didn’t want to do perfectly anything,” Hernandez said. “The only point I did was enactment laying down, look astatine nan toilet, retrieve my family, asking myself a cardinal questions.”

Another detainee who said to NBC News, Jerce Reyes, said Hernandez told him aft they were released that he was sexually abused by CECOT staff. Hernandez besides said connected Venezuelan authorities media that he was sexually abused while successful CECOT.

“He told america that erstwhile we arrived successful Venezuela, that he suffered maltreatment astatine nan hands of guards location successful El Salvador,” said Reyes, referring to Hernandez’s relationship of intersexual abuse.

Andry Hernandez Romero.Family photo

Hernandez said he was unaware of immoderate general strategy astatine CECOT done which he could study nan alleged maltreatment and that if detainees tried to kick to superiors astatine nan prison, they would often beryllium subjected to beatings by guards.

The Salvadoran authorities did not instantly respond to a petition for remark connected Hernandez’s intersexual battle allegations and claims from different Venezuelan men that they were physically and psychologically abused successful nan prison. The authorities has antecedently said it observes information and bid standards, and the head of CECOT told CNN that “the full cognition is based connected strict respect for quality rights.” In a statement, nan U.S. Department of Homeland Security referred NBC News to nan Salvadoran authorities for remark because nan Venezuelan men were “not U.S. citizens aliases nether U.S. jurisdiction.”

When asked whether nan U.S. authorities would proceed to nonstop group to CECOT, Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said successful a statement, “whether it is CECOT, Alligator Alcatraz, Guantanamo Bay aliases different detention facility, these vulnerable criminals will not beryllium allowed to terrorize U.S. citizens.”

The connection said that President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem “are utilizing each instrumentality disposable to get criminal forbidden aliens disconnected our streets and retired of our country. Our connection is clear: Criminals are not invited successful nan United States.”

‘You will not beryllium leaving here’

Hernandez and others said they were many times beaten by situation officials.

“Our regular breadstuff location arsenic Venezuelans were beatings, threats. For immoderate circumstance,” Hernandez said. “If you reply an official, they deed you. ... If you talk, they deed you.”

“Every clip they went to deed a ample group outside, they would put america successful nan required position truthful we couldn’t see. And to perceive nan moans, to perceive really they were hitting nan group was besides very heavy.”

Another detainee, Andry Blanco Bonilla, 40, said he and nan different Venezuelans faced verbal, psychological and beingness maltreatment from nan time they entered CECOT.

“There were truthful galore moments of anguish and terror,” he said successful Spanish. “I feared for my life.”

Blanco Bonilla said that erstwhile they first arrived astatine CECOT, nan men were shackled truthful tightly astatine nan ankles that stepping “would springiness america cuts and bruises.” He said nan guards denied them nutrient and entree to bathrooms aliases showers arsenic punishment.

Blanco Bonilla, who had gone to nan U.S. to activity asylum, said he would ne'er hide nan words of a situation charismatic who told nan detainees, “Welcome to CECOT. Welcome to hell.”

“You will not beryllium leaving here. Your days are over,” nan charismatic said, according to Blanco Bonilla.

The detainees would suffer beatings arsenic nan guards saw fit, he said.

“They tried to debar hitting our faces. They kicked america successful nan backmost aliases ribs,” he said. “When they made america get connected our knees, they would measurement connected our toes pinch their boots. They deed america pinch batons, they deed america connected nan head.”

After a beating, Blanco Bonilla said he would beryllium brought by guards to a situation doctor, who would opportunity to him, “You deed yourself. How did you deed yourself?”

When he tried to show nan expert that he was beaten by situation staff, a defender would deed him pinch a baton successful nan back, Blanco Bonilla said. The expert would past inquire him again, “How did you deed yourself?”

“I realized that if I didn’t show them what they wanted, they would support hitting me,” he said, adding that nan expert would past make a mendacious study astir nan incident.

‘We are only migrants’

Reyes, 36, said 1 of hardest moments for him was erstwhile a situation charismatic “encouraged america to perpetrate suicide” and told him “this is really your full nightmare ends.”

“I did deliberation astir committing termination astatine immoderate point. But I thought astir my 2 daughters, I thought astir my family,” he said astir his 2 children, ages 3 and 6.

Reyes said location were days erstwhile “we woke up and each said to ourselves, ‘We aren’t getting retired of here.’” He said he witnessed and knowledgeable beingness aggression from CECOT guards.

Reyes said he was thankful that he and different men were capable to stock copies of nan Bible wrong and motivate each other.

Jerce Reyes was reunited pinch family members successful Venezuela aft spending 4 months successful situation successful El Salvador.Yogerse Viloria

The detainees who said to NBC News said they had nary interaction pinch nan extracurricular world aliases entree to U.S. officials during nan 4 months they were held successful CECOT.

Reyes did callback seeing Noem locomotion by erstwhile she toured CECOT successful March, soon aft he and nan others were sent there. She went past respective cells that Salvadoran officials assured her held hardened criminals and pack members.

Reyes says he wasn’t told Noem was coming but remembers that time arsenic nan only time nan detainees had gotten thing acold to drink.

He said he and others pressed their faces to nan bars and saw her. “We began screaming, ‘Freedom, freedom, freedom. We are not criminals. We are only migrants,’” Reyes said.

The men were sent to CECOT aft Trump invoked nan Alien Enemies Act successful March, declaring nan Venezuelan pack Tren de Aragua an invading force. Immigration officials person since utilized that enactment to deport hundreds of group without migration hearings, alleging that they were pack members.

Former CECOT detainee Jerce Reyes draws nan position he and different cellmates would person to beryllium successful during regular compartment inspection.Jerce Reyes

The men who said to NBC News, as good arsenic nan families of erstwhile detainees and their attorneys, person powerfully denied immoderate ties to gangs and said they were unfairly targeted because of tattoos that whitethorn beryllium celebrated successful Venezuela and are unrelated to Tren de Aragua. They person besides said immoderate migrants were denied owed process and a chance to take sides themselves from nan accusations against them. Experts person said tattoos are not intimately connected pinch affiliation to Tren de Aragua. An charismatic pinch Immigration and Customs Enforcement previously said nan management did not solely trust connected tattoos to place nan men sent to CECOT arsenic pack members.

A New York Times investigation, which relied connected interviews pinch prosecutors and rule enforcement officials arsenic good arsenic tribunal documents and media reports successful aggregate countries, recovered that astir of nan men sent to CECOT did not person criminal records successful nan United States aliases successful nan region. It recovered astatine slightest 32 of nan much than 200 men faced superior criminal accusations aliases convictions successful nan United States aliases abroad. Very fewer of them appeared to person immoderate documented grounds connecting them to Tren de Aragua.

The men said their beardown religion successful God, emotion for their families and a belief that 1 time they would get justness helped them support going during their astir hopeless moments.

“Reuniting again pinch my parents and children was a infinitesimal of specified happiness,” Blanco Bonilla said.

Jerce Reyes, successful nan reddish cap, is welcomed backmost to Venezuela aft spending 4 months successful situation successful El Salvador.Joregelis Reyes

While nan men resume life backmost successful Venezuela, nan mobility of whether they would ever return to nan U.S. remains. During a position proceeding Thursday tied to nan government’s usage of nan Alien Enemies Act, nan Department of Justice said it would bring immoderate of nan men backmost for migration aliases habeas proceedings if a “lawful order” were issued.

“Venezuela has made assurances they’ll let america to do that,” DOJ lawyer Tiberius Davis told nan court.

Now that they are backmost location pinch their families, nan men person said they are demanding justness from Trump and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele.

On Thursday, erstwhile detainee Neiyerver Adrián Leon Rengel revenge a complaint, reviewed by NBC News, against nan Department of Homeland Security nether nan Federal Tort Claims Act, claiming he was removed from nan United States unlawfully and without owed process. The complaint was revenge connected behalf Rengel by nan League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and nan Democracy Defenders Fund, which describes itself arsenic a nonpartisan group that defends antiauthoritarian institutions and opposes autocrats.

LULAC told NBC News that it besides planned to record a suit and expected much lawsuits to travel aft that.

Rengel alleged that he suffered physical, verbal and psychological maltreatment successful CECOT and that nan U.S. authorities could person and should person secured his release, according to nan complaint.

The Department of Homeland Security declined to remark connected nan complaint.

“We were mistreated, our authorities were violated, crimes against humanity were committed,” Blanco Bonilla said.

Hernandez said he and others are still moving done nan psychological effects of their clip successful CECOT. “All 252 [of nan men] are doing poorly, mentally.”

“Even though we are free, moreover though we are now pinch our families, happy and content,” he said, “there is still a large intelligence block, a artifact that peculiarly I person not been capable to find a measurement to woody with.”

But contempt their ongoing struggles, Hernandez said nan shared acquisition has created a lasting consciousness of organization among nan men.

“We entered [CECOT] arsenic 252 strangers, 252 Venezuelans, but 252 brothers came out,” Hernandez said. “We each supported each other; we were each location successful nan changeless fight.”

If you aliases personification you cognize is successful crisis, telephone aliases matter 988, aliases spell to 988lifeline.org, to scope nan Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You tin besides telephone nan network, antecedently known arsenic nan National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, astatine 800-273-8255, aliases sojourn SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.