After 125 days of detention in El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, two Venezuelan nationals were released, prompting calls for accountability from the U.S. government regarding their treatment and forced return.
WASHINGTON, D.C., July 19, 2025 — Venezuelan nationals Edicson Quintero Chacón and Jose Manuel Ramos Bastidas were released yesterday after spending 125 days in El Salvador’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT). Their release came as part of a U.S.-brokered flight back to Venezuela, which included approximately 250 other Venezuelans detained at CECOT.
Counsel for both men expressed profound relief at their release, emphasizing the urgent need for accountability from the U.S. government for their initial detention. The U.S. government had sent Quintero and Ramos to CECOT on March 15, 2025, where they were held without charges and incommunicado in a facility widely condemned for mass arbitrary detention and inhumane treatment.
Both men had previously been ordered removed from the United States but had communicated to a federal court their desire to return home to Venezuela. Instead, they were sent to CECOT, despite the terms of the agreement with El Salvador specifying that only “members” of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA) would be sent. There is no evidence linking either man to TdA.
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.
“This news of flights to Venezuela was like being hit with a bucket of cold water because my family had absolutely no idea this was happening,” said a family member of Mr. Quintero Chacón, who requested anonymity. “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. 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 with no idea of whether we’d ever see him again.”
Roynerliz Rodriguez, partner of Jose Manuel Ramos Bastidas, shared her relief, stating, “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. 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, not knowing anything about Jose Manuel and only imagining what he must be suffering.”
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 United States’ compliance with both domestic and international legal obligations.
To date, the U.S. government has not publicly accounted for how individuals were selected for transfer to CECOT or the full scope of conditions they endured. There has been no complete list of names released of those detained, leaving uncertainty about whether each victim is accounted for.
The use of foreign detention facilities, particularly those with documented records of systemic abuse, raises serious human rights and due process concerns. Critics argue that the U.S. government should not engage in detention outsourcing 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.
“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,” said Rebecca Cassler, senior litigation attorney at the American Immigration Council. “The U.S. government paid to detain these men in one of the world’s most notorious prisons, then denied responsibility while they suffered. For months, the Trump administration misled the courts and the public, pretending it had no control over their fate. This deal proves otherwise.”
CJ Sandley, senior staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, added, “We celebrate this news, along with the loved ones of Mr. Quintero Chacón and Mr. Ramos Bastidas and over 250 Venezuelans who returned to Venezuela yesterday after being disappeared and tortured for months at the direction and expense of the United States government. 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.”
Stephanie M. Alvarez-Jones, Southeast Regional Attorney at the National Immigration Project, expressed her joy over the release but emphasized the need for accountability. “While we celebrate their long overdue release, the government must be held accountable for its outrageous actions,” she said.
The American Immigration Council, 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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