MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Venezuelan opposition leader dies in detention facility

There are currently at least 887 political prisoners in Venezuela

Former Nueva Esparta Governor Alfredo Díaz has died while in the custody of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (Sebin) at the El Helicoide detention center, his family and human rights organizations confirmed this weekend in Caracas. Díaz, 56, had been detained since November 2024 and was facing judicial proceedings on charges of “terrorism” and “incitement to hatred.”

The death was acknowledged by the Venezuelan Ministry of Penitentiary Services on Sunday, which issued a statement claiming the cause was a “myocardial infarction.” Díaz “showed symptoms consistent with a myocardial infarction” on Saturday at approximately 6:33 a.m. and “sadly died minutes later” after being transferred to the University Clinical Hospital, the official statement read.

Venezuela's Bolivarian regime insisted he was being prosecuted “with full guarantees of his rights” and guarantees.

However, Díaz's wife, Leynys Malavé, stated she had not received any medical documentation and had been unable to access the body, prompting her to request a formal explanation.

The circumstances surrounding the death have immediately triggered demands for clarification from international bodies, non-governmental organizations, and political leaders.

Relatives and the defense team had previously noted that Díaz had restricted access to visits and communications during his imprisonment and had requested medical evaluations on multiple occasions.

NGOs such as Foro Penal and opposition figures have called for an independent probe into the circumstances, demanding the publication of medical and judicial records to reconstruct the final hours leading up to the notification. Foro Penal's Director Alfredo Romero stated that Díaz “had been imprisoned and isolated for a year,” with severely limited visitation.

Díaz is the sixth opposition figure to die while in state custody since November 2024.

The US State Department’s Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs called the incident “another reminder of the vile nature of [President Nicolás] Maduro's criminal regime” and stressed that El Helicoide was a “torture center.”

Opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado issued a joint statement with exiled opposition figure Edmundo González Urrutia, arguing that Díaz's death “adds to an alarming and painful chain of deaths of political prisoners” detained following the controversial July 2024 elections.

In their view, these deaths, which often involve the denial of medical care, inhumane conditions, and torture, reveal a “sustained pattern of state repression” aimed at intimidation.

According to Foro Penal's latest count, there are currently at least 887 political prisoners in Venezuela.