Venezuelan Mother Grieves Son’s Death After State Confirms Prison Passing

Carmen Navas, the 82-year-old mother who spent nearly a year searching for her detained son in Venezuela, has died just ten days after authorities confirmed he had died in state custody. The NGO handling her case reported this tragic news.

Navas became a prominent figure in Venezuela while publicly pleading for information on her 50-year-old son, Victor Quero. Ten days ago, authorities revealed that Quero died of respiratory failure in the infamous Rodeo I prison last July.

Foro Penal head Alfredo Romero said prison officials had repeatedly told Navas they did not know where her son was.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado mourned Navas on social media, praising her for confronting a “terror apparatus” to find her son. Machado noted that Navas’ voice had become that of thousands of mothers seeking disappeared or imprisoned children.

Early this year, after the US attacked Caracas and captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Venezuela’s government passed an amnesty law intended to free hundreds of people rights groups consider political prisoners. Venezuelan authorities have always denied holding political prisoners, stating those detained committed legitimate crimes.