An investigation by BBC Mundo sheds new light on the detention conditions at CECOT, the notorious Salvadoran mega-prison originally built to imprison dangerous gang members, now also used as a detention facility for migrants deported by the US.
Of the eight Venezuelan migrants interviewed by BBC, only two were under deportation orders when they were arrested and sent to El Salvador as part of the vast immigration crackdown ordered by the Trump administration. All describe horrific detention conditions marred by overcrowding, lack of proper sanitation, physical and psychological torture – one alleges he was sexually abused by the guards who targeted him because he was openly gay. Access to phone calls and legal services were denied to them.
Using their testimonies, BBC was able to reconstruct a plan of the prison, its cells, and the dreaded “islands”, the dark, narrow cells where guards take prisoners to be humiliated and abused in secrecy.
The 252 Venezuelan migrants deported by the US to CECOT were extracted in July, after four months of detention, and sent back to Venezuela as part of a prisoner swap with American citizens.
3 Comments
When must we do it
At the behest of white supremacists.
I want a vengeful President.
!ping IMMIGRATION&LATAM&TRUMP-CRIMES
An investigation by BBC Mundo sheds new light on the detention conditions at CECOT, the notorious Salvadoran mega-prison originally built to imprison dangerous gang members, now also used as a detention facility for migrants deported by the US.
Of the eight Venezuelan migrants interviewed by BBC, only two were under deportation orders when they were arrested and sent to El Salvador as part of the vast immigration crackdown ordered by the Trump administration. All describe horrific detention conditions marred by overcrowding, lack of proper sanitation, physical and psychological torture – one alleges he was sexually abused by the guards who targeted him because he was openly gay. Access to phone calls and legal services were denied to them.
Using their testimonies, BBC was able to reconstruct a plan of the prison, its cells, and the dreaded “islands”, the dark, narrow cells where guards take prisoners to be humiliated and abused in secrecy.
The 252 Venezuelan migrants deported by the US to CECOT were extracted in July, after four months of detention, and sent back to Venezuela as part of a prisoner swap with American citizens.