Free migrants reveal hellish horrors in Salvadoran jail
Mervin Yamarte’s Return: A Venezuelan Survivor’s Journey
Mervin Yamarte (C), a Venezuelan migrant, was welcomed back by his family in Maracaibo after being repatriated from a notorious prison in El Salvador. His life story blends a daring escape through the Darien Gap, a breath‑holding US detention, and months suffered in a Salvadoran jail marked by riots, beatings and a chilling sense of limbo.
Heading a Homecoming
- Upon arrival in the sweltering Caribbean port of Maracaibo, Yamarte hugged his mother and his six‑year‑old daughter.
- He promptly burned the baggy white prison shorts that had symbolized four months of “hell.”
- “The suffering is over now,” he declared, enjoying a cathartic moment long awaited.
The Trail of Trauma
Yamarte was one of 252 Venezuelans detained during President Donald Trump’s March immigration crackdown. Accused, without evidence, of gang affiliation, they were deported to El Salvador’s “Terrorism Confinement Center” (CECOT), a maximum‑security facility built by President Nayib Bukele to house the country’s most dangerous gang members.
Life Inside the Prison
- Detainees were separated from the local prison population in Pavilion 8, a 32‑cell building each cell around 100 m², designed to hold up to 80 prisoners.
- Guards issued inmates a T‑shirt, shorts, socks, and white plastic clogs. Hair, alas, was cut except for a small tuft left at the nape of Yamarte’s neck.
- Inmates received only one early‑morning shower (at 4:00 am). Attendance out of turn triggered beatings.
- There were several poorly ventilated cells that locked men for 24 hours for real or imagined infractions. Some detainees were carried out unconscious.
- Guards used rubber bullets and tear gas, fired them into cells, and publicly threatened inmates with eternal imprisonment.
- Safes and emergency provisions: No internet, phone, or lawyer visits. Some detainees reported sexual abuse. Sleeping conditions were metal cots without mattresses.
The Fight for Survival
- One detainee, Maikel Olivera (37), reported “beatings 24 hours a day” and was told, “you will rot here, 300‑year jail.”
- Andy Perozo (30) recounted that after a riot, guards “shot me every morning” and violently beat him at the infirmary.
- Edwuar Hernandez (23) described relentless kicks and brutal medical attention.
- With no normal recreation, detainees found solace in makeshift dice made from tortilla dough and counted days by notches on soap.
Escape Across Two Continents
Yamarte started his perilous journey in September 2023, traversing the Darien Gap—an unforgiving terrain that has claimed countless migrants with predators, wild animals and a bleak landscape. He was captured in Dallas in March and deported three days later without a court hearing.
All 252 detainees were released on July 18, 2024 in a prisoner exchange between Caracas and Washington. As many contemplate legal action, they claim the arrests stemmed from tattoos mistakenly associated with the feared Tren de Aragua gang.
Open Hands: Sense of Relief
- Back in Maracaibo, Yamarte’s mother, Mercedes (46), prepared a special lunch of steak, mashed potatoes and fried green plantain.
- His brother Juan, a visa‑less immigrant in the US, called him, telling him he only needed to earn $1,700 to pay off a house he bought in Venezuela for his family.
- Yamarte’s mother, daughter and brother celebrated with balloons and banners once the news of the release spread.
Final Words
“The suffering is over now. We’ve come out of hell,” Yamarte said, emphatic about his false accusations and his aspiration to support families in pursuit of a better future.
