After 125 days in El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, two Venezuelan nationals were released, prompting calls for accountability from the U.S. government for their detention and treatment.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Venezuelan nationals Edicson Quintero Chacón and Jose Manuel Ramos Bastidas were released yesterday after spending 125 days in El Salvador’s infamous Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT). Their release came on a U.S.-brokered flight back to Venezuela, alongside approximately 250 other Venezuelans detained at CECOT, a facility criticized for its inhumane conditions.
Counsel for both men expressed relief at their release but underscored the urgent need for accountability regarding their initial detention. The U.S. government transferred the men to CECOT on March 15, 2025, where they were held without charges and incommunicado, in a facility known for mass arbitrary detention and mistreatment.
Both Quintero and Bastidas had previously been ordered removed from the United States. They informed a federal court that they wished to return home to Venezuela, but instead, they were sent to CECOT. The agreement between the U.S. and El Salvador stipulated that the U.S. would send members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA), yet there is no evidence linking either man to the gang. Their return to Venezuela was part of a prisoner swap deal that also involved the release of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents from Venezuela.
A family member of Quintero, who requested anonymity, expressed shock at the sudden news of the flights to Venezuela. “Edicson should never have been sent to CECOT in the first place. No one should. He was treated cruelly and inhumanely when all he wanted was safety,” they said. “This so-called prisoner swap doesn’t undo the injustice he suffered, nor the pain and terror that my family has had to endure in the past several months.”
Roynerliz Rodriguez, the partner of Jose Manuel Ramos Bastidas, shared her relief at his release. “We have been waiting for this moment for months, and I feel like I can finally breathe, knowing that Jose Manuel is now free from CECOT and on his way home,” she said. “His son, whom he hasn’t seen since he was four months old, is eagerly waiting for him. These last months have been a living nightmare.”
Concerns remain regarding the legality and transparency of the U.S. government’s actions. Many individuals sent to CECOT had pending asylum claims and expressed credible fears of returning to Venezuela. Their forced return, without due process to address their asylum requests, raises significant questions about the U.S. government’s compliance with both domestic and international legal obligations.
There has been no public accounting of how individuals were selected for transfer to CECOT, nor has there been a comprehensive list of those detained. The lack of transparency raises further concerns about whether all victims are accounted for.
The practice of outsourcing detention to foreign facilities, particularly those with documented records of systemic abuse, poses serious human rights and due process issues. Critics argue that the U.S. government should not engage in such arrangements or collaborate with regimes that violate human rights. A full investigation into these disappearances is necessary, along with safeguards to prevent similar actions by future administrations.
Rebecca Cassler, a senior litigation attorney at the American Immigration Council, stated, “We are deeply relieved that Mr. Quintero Chacón and Mr. Ramos Bastidas are finally released from CECOT, but this should never have happened in the first place. The U.S. government paid to detain these men in one of the world’s most notorious prisons, then denied responsibility while they suffered.”
CJ Sandley, a senior staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, emphasized the inhumane treatment of the detainees. “The deals made for these Venezuelans’ confinement and transfers treat human beings as bargaining chips and underscore the cruel consequences of criminalizing migration and monetizing torture,” he said. “The U.S. government must stop these abuses and uphold its obligations to protect the rights and dignity of all people.”
Stephanie M. Alvarez-Jones, Southeast Regional Attorney at the National Immigration Project, also expressed her relief at the men’s release. “It is unconscionable that they and 250 other Venezuelan men were sent by the United States to be detained at CECOT and forced to endure suffering,” she said. “While we celebrate their long overdue release, the government must be held accountable for its outrageous actions.”
The American Immigration Council, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the National Immigration Project represent Mr. Quintero Chacón and Mr. Ramos Bastidas in their habeas corpus proceedings in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, where they have been fighting for their freedom from CECOT.
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