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Venezuelan Authorities Confirm Death of Detainee Víctor Hugo Quero Navas in Custody
Carmen Navas spent a year searching prisons for her son, who was arrested in January 2025 and died in custody five months later. Venezuelan authorities acknowledged the death this week, listing respiratory failure as the cause. Human rights groups question the official account as 454 political prisoners remain behind bars.
May 8, 5:00 PM·2m read1 source
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Venezuelan authorities this week admitted that Víctor Hugo Quero Navas died on July 25, 2025, while in state custody. The 51-year-old karate teacher and street vendor, known as "the Russian" because of his blond hair and light eyes, had been arrested in January 2025 by plainclothes Venezuelan military intelligence agents.
He was accused of treason, conspiracy and terrorism, charges commonly leveled against perceived political dissidents because of his past service in the Venezuelan military.
Quero Navas was sent to El Rodeo I prison outside Caracas. One month after his arrest he was taken to the prison infirmary after vomiting blood. Fellow inmates never saw him again. In October 2025 the regime told his mother, Carmen Navas, that he was still being held at El Rodeo I.
She visited the prison on at least a dozen occasions after learning his location. During one visit intelligence agents questioned her for over six hours. " according to journalist Víctor Amaya. Prison officials claimed Quero Navas had not listed any relatives and that no family members had formally requested a visit.
They buried his body in a marked grave. The official cause of death was listed as respiratory failure by the Venezuela prison ministry. Investigators are planning to exhume Quero Navas's body to confirm the cause of death.
Martha Tineo, director of the Venezuela-based human rights organization Justicia, Encuentro y Perdón, said the investigation cannot remain under the control of those responsible for the victim's custody. "Especially when there are elements that undermine the transparency and credibility of the official account," Tineo added.
