The recent deportation of Venezuelan migrants from the United States to El Salvador’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Centre has sparked widespread concern and outrage among families who claim their loved ones were wrongly accused of being part of the feared Tren de Aragua gang.
Per BBC, Myrelis Casique López, a distraught mother, recognised her son Francisco José García Casique in televised footage from the prison, despite his insistence that he has no ties to any criminal organisation. “He doesn’t belong to any criminal gang, either in the US or in Venezuela… he’s not a criminal,” she insisted. “What he’s been is a barber.”
The mass deportation was justified under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, with President Trump claiming that the US was facing an “invasion” by a criminal organisation linked to kidnappings, contract killings, and extortion. However, families of the deportees argue that their loved ones were misidentified and had no connections to the TdA gang.
Under this order all Venezuelan citizens aged 14 or older who are suspected to be gang members and were not lawful US citizens became “liable to be apprehended, restrained, secured, and removed as Alien Enemies.”
Judge Hames Boasberg tried to block the deportation, since the move was legally challenged, however, since the ruling was not included in writing, the administration went ahead with the deportation.
President Trump took to Truth Social to comment on the deportation, saying “These are monsters sent into our country by Crooked Joe Biden and the Radical Left Democrats. How dare they!” Senator Marco Rubio also echoed President Trump’s stance, stating that “hundreds of violent criminals were sent out of our country” and thanking El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele for facilitating the transfers.
According to Daily Mail, of the 238 deportees, 137 were suspected TdA members, while the rest included 101 Venezuelans removed under Title 8 and 23 Salvadoran MS-13 members, including two high-profile gang leaders.
The conditions at the Terrorism Confinement Centre have been described as inhumane, with detainees facing overcrowding, disease, and denial of basic necessities like food, clothing, and hygiene.
The prison also does not have any outdoor recreational space and family visits are not allowed. The prisoners wear shorts and have their heads shaved.
Families of Venezuelan migrants are reeling in shock after discovering their loved ones were deported to El Salvador’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) without notice. The deportation, carried out by the Donald Trump administration, allegedly targeted members of the Tren de Aragua gang. However, families claim their relatives were misidentified and have no ties to the gang.
Per El Pais, Mercedes Yamarte, a distraught mother, identified her son Melvin Yamarte in a video released by El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele. Melvin, 29, appeared kneeling, wearing a torn black shirt, with his head shaved. His tattoos, which include his daughter’s name and a declaration of love for his mother, contradict claims that he’s a gang member.
The deportation was justified under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which allows the president to detain or expel individuals from a nation considered an enemy. However, families argue that their relatives voluntarily surrendered to the US due to economic hardship, not criminal activity.
While White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt labels the deportees as “terrorists” and “heinous monsters,” families maintain that there’s no evidence of their loved ones having a criminal record.