Information in this database covers 238 Venezuelan men who were sent to Cecot, the maximum security prison in Salvador on March 15, and whose names were first published CBS NEWS. The men were released last week and returned to Venezuela. (In general, more than 250 Venezuelan men were imprisoned and released.)
Database is part of a joint PROPUBLICA investigation, Texas Tribune and Venezuelan news Rebel Alianza investigates (The rebel alliance is investigated) and Fake news (Fake news hunters). To confirm the identity of the departments, we used the male birth dates to search for official databases of the Venezuelan government, including the database of the identity of the Ministry of Power of the People’s Power for Internal Relations, Justice and Peace; public database of the National Institute of Social Insurance; and the public database of the Venezuelan register. The news organizations interviewed family members from more than 100 Venezuelan deported, except dozens of lawyers and supporters representing men. The interview was carried out before the release of men, and many were made in Spanish.
We have highlighted the social media records of men and their relatives, news, the US government’s press and court documents. To determine what happened to our immigration affairs, we analyzed records from the US Department of Justice Executive Office for immigration.
We also only received data sets The government had about people before they deported them. These data sets included whether they were convicted of crimes in the United States, the allegations were expected or included exclusively as immigration violations. Some of the information lacked about nine men. To verify and expand this information, we have searched for US public record databases; Considered the police, the Sheriff’s Department and the County County sites; read court documents; And they presented dozens of requests for state records to law enforcement and judicial systems across the country. The conviction conclusions are not exhaustive because there is no universal charge database.
In order to find a criminal history in foreign countries, we have considered records from the official website of the Venezuelan High Tribunal Supreme Tribunal and consulted in the world legal framework. We also interviewed police officers in Peru, Chile and Colombia. In addition, we received three Venezuelan police databases and the Interpol report in January 2024 to create a list of more than 1400 names allegedly members of the Venezuelan gang, including Tren de Aragua members. We checked that 238 men did not find matches against the names.
For the persons whom the Trump administration indicated how to expect a criminal case or criminal convictions in the US, we tried to address their relatives and their defenders. When we got the answer we included it.
In addition, we asked Trump’s administration about each of these cases. If this is not noted in some records, the administration did not answer questions about men.
The database reflects the age of men on March 15.
