Authorities must investigate the alleged murder of Edwin Santos in Apure, Venezuela

In the early morning of October 25, Edwin Santos – a regional leader of a Venezuelan opposition party, activist and radio host from the border town of El Nula – was found dead on a bridge connecting the Venezuelan states of Apure and Táchira. Santos had been miss since Wednesday, October 23, after witnesses reported that he was arrested by State Security officers as he rode his motorcycle to the town of El Pinal, in Táchira. Witnesses also reported that he was held at the headquarters of the Venezuelan Military Counterintelligence Service (DCGIM) in Guasdualito, Apure. The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) is Expresses its deep concern at the death of Santos, which is part of the massive repression following the presidential elections on 28 July, and calls on the Venezuelan authorities to carry out an independent and thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.

Santos was not only a co-founder of Popular by choice (People's Will) in Apure, a national party opposed to the government of President Nicolás Maduro, but also an influential young leader, activist and committed Catholic volunteer. He was known for his commitment to democratic causes and his local community.

Mr. Douglas Rico, Director of the Police Department of Scientific, Criminal and Forensic Investigations (CICPC), published a opinion on the same day that Edwin Santos' body was found without first conducting a thorough examination, stating that Santos died in a motorcycle accident after colliding with a tree and rejected any other possible cause of death. Furthermore, in his social media Mr. Rico has reportedly stated that the CICPC has received instructions from the Ministry of Internal Relations, Justice and Peace, led by Minister Diosdado Cabello, to open an investigation against anyone who is part of “campaigns of disinformation and lies.”

These events occurred in a context in which the Independent UN fact-finding mission on Venezuela concluded that there are reasons for this Crimes against humanity were committed “as part of the same widespread and systematic attack on civilians in furtherance of a state policy of silencing, discouraging and repressing opposition to the government of President Maduro.” Since the July 28 presidential election, in which President Maduro's victory was widely disputed due to credible evidence suggesting otherwise, there has been an alarming crackdown on opposition activists, labeled by the government as state-sponsored terrorism Inter-American Commission on Human Rightsincluding at least 25 deaths and almost 2,000 arrests.

WOLA strongly condemns the ongoing political persecution in Venezuela and calls on the authorities to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into this alleged killing and to ensure that all material and intellectual perpetrators of this alleged crime are brought to justice. Edwin Santos' family has a right to know the truth about the circumstances in which he died.