Latest news with #Venezuela
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Remains of TikTok star are found in Peru
The remains of Fabiola Alejandra Caicedo Pina have been identified through her distinctive tattoos after being discovered in Peru. The TikTok star was located while workers were conducting a routine inspection of the La Atarjea plant, reported InfoBae, an Argentinian outlet. She had been dismembered and was discovered at the treatment plant in Lima, Peru on June 9. Pieces of Caicedo's body were found in bags outside the plant. Caicedo posted her last TikTok on June 5 and she had a tattoo on her arm which included the phrase, 'Love me for who I am' in English. Another tattoo with the words 'Paula Sophia' was found on her torso. On June 15, more bodily remains were found. As of June 19, some body parts were still missing. Authorities are unsure what caused her death although strangulation is suspected. Two main theories are circulating among police about who could be behind Caicedo's murder. One theory is that the woman was caught up in Peru's human trafficking trade. In recent weeks, multiple young women have been found dead in the Lima area or in the Rimac River, some of them zipped up into suitcases. Police also believe that Caicedo could have been killed by people who wanted revenge for the death of her ex-boyfriend, who died in 2022 under mysterious circumstances. In 2022, Caicedo left her home country of Venezuela at just 16 years old. She was accompanied by her then-boyfriend, Mayner Yoffrey Gimenez Castrillo, who was 21 years older than her. Castrillo died months after the two moved to Lima together, which led to his family suspecting that Caicedo was involved somehow. Various family members publicly accused Caicedo, then a minor, of conspiring with a new romantic partner to kill Castrillo. Police first believed that Castrillo was beaten to death but now think it could have been a suicide. The case remains open three years later. Caicedo has never been formally investigated for her ex-boyfriend's death and continued her lifestyle of working at nightclubs and bars. Police suspect that on the night before Caicedo's death, she was lured away from a party under false pretenses. Cigarette burns on her feet and legs have led police to believe that she may have also been tortured. Her remains were thought to be dumped into the Rimac River, where they later ended up at the water treatment plant. No arrests have been made and no suspects have been named in Caicedo's murder.
Arab News
7 hours ago
- Business
- Arab News
Drilling for water in Venezuela's parched oil town
MARACAIBO: In Venezuela's oil capital of Maracaibo, a drilling frenzy has led to dozens of new wells — but the valuable liquid being pumped out is just water, not petroleum. In a symbol of the woes of Venezuela's crumbling economy, the once flourishing oil town of 2 million people is parched. Experts blame the nationwide shortage of drinking water on corruption and years of underinvestment and mismanagement by national and local governments, resulting in frequent water cuts. The corroding infrastructure has led to schools, homes, businesses, churches and health centers all digging their own wells — at a huge expense. A private well costs between $1,000 and $6,000, a fortune in the sanctions-hit Caribbean country where the minimum monthly wage is around $200. As a result, homes that come with a ready-made well and generator — Venezuelans also live with recurring power cuts — sell for a premium. While water rationing has been in place in Venezuelan cities for years, the situation in Maracaibo has become critical, as pumping stations break down, old pipes leak and reservoirs run dry. No water came out of the taps in certain parts of the city for over a month at the start of 2025. Manuel Palmar and six other families in the lower-middle-class neighborhood of Ziruma saw the writing on the wall four years ago. They each paid $2,500 to build a 12-meter-deep (40-foot) well, which can store up to about 80,000 liters (21,000 gallons) of spring water each week. Now when Palmar turns on the tap, water gushes out for free. The water is not fit for drinking due to its high salinity — saltwater from the Caribbean Sea seeps into Lake Maracaibo, a coastal lake used as a freshwater source — but 'it's perfect for washing clothes and flushing toilets,' he explained. 'It's a blessing!' the 34-year-old accountant said. There's a solution of sorts for every budget. Some residents fill 200-liter drums at official filling stations or communal taps for $2-$3. Others order a water truck to fill their building's tank for between $40 and $60. Some even recycle the water produced by the tropical city's ubiquitous air conditioners or collect rainwater. But those are all quick fixes. Over the past six years, more and more residents have begun digging wells to guarantee their long-term supply for the future. Gabriel Delgado has built about 20 wells in Maracaibo, including at a heart disease clinic and four private schools. He also built one at his mother-in-law's home: a gray cement cylinder, one and a half meters in diameter, buried under metal sheeting and rocks. Cobwebs dangle just above the water level, but as soon as he activates the pump, water pours forth. It's crystal clear, unlike the yellowish liquid that flows from the city's taps during the rainy season, and Delgado eagerly sips it. Venezuelans must receive authorization from health and environmental authorities before drilling a well, and they are required to provide water samples for testing to ensure it is fit for consumption once it's built. But not everyone bothers. Javier Otero, head of Maracaibo's municipal water department, told AFP that he had come across shallow artisanal wells built near sewers or polluted ravines. 'Some people drink water that is not potable, that is brackish,' he told AFP. The municipality has built seven wells to supply Maracaibo's poorer neighborhoods.
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Venezuelan opposition member details harrowing 400-day captivity at UN
Pedro Urruchurtu spoke to the United Nations Human Rights Council on Friday about what he had endured at the hands of Nicolás Maduro's regime while being forced to shelter in place for over 400 days. Urruchurtu and four other members of Venezuela's political opposition were freed in May in a successful U.S. rescue mission. He and his colleagues were effectively trapped inside the Argentine Embassy in Caracas — where the opposition members fled to, and were sheltered due to the diplomatic status of the embassy. The opposition figures were under siege by regime forces who made their lives extremely difficult due to their control of the utilities. Urruchurtu told the council he had endured "five months without electricity, three minutes of water every ten days, rifles pointed at the windows, and dogs trained to bite; only because those in power considered it a crime to direct the campaigns of Maria Corina Machado in the opposition primaries and Edmundo González in the presidential elections. Both won." Opinion: America Needs A Venezuela Deal That Only President Trump Can Deliver "Today I am here despite the state, and not thanks to it, because if it were up to it, I would be missing or dead," Urruchurtu said. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk told the council that since May 1, 2024, the human rights situation in Venezuela has only gotten worse. The people have experienced "arbitrary detentions, violations of due process and enforced disappearances, amid continued allegations of torture and ill-treatment." Read On The Fox News App Türk revealed that his office had documented 32 people — 15 of them adolescents — who reported being tortured and ill-treated in detention. He also noted that 28 people had been subjected to enforced disappearance after the country's parliamentary elections, which took place in May 2025. He said their whereabouts remain unknown and that at least 12 of them were foreign nationals who "do not have access to consular assistance." Venezuelan Opposition Promises Reparations To Laken Riley's Family, Other Victims Of Tren De Aragua Violence "The world must no longer look away from the brutal reality of what the once-beautiful Venezuela has become. Nicolás Maduro and his enforcers are running a criminal narco-terrorist dictatorship that jails political opponents, tortures dissidents, and crushes any hope of free expression. Pedro's voice today represents the cries of thousands of Venezuelans who remain imprisoned, persecuted or forced into exile, as slaves to the regime," UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer told Fox News Digital. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in a post on X on May 6 that the opposition members, including Urruchurtu, had been rescued in "a precise operation" and brought to the U.S. A few weeks later, Rubio met with the released opposition members. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said that Rubio had commended the Venezuelan opposition members for their "bravery in the face of Maduro's relentless repression and tyranny." Neuer also expressed gratitude for the Trump administration and Rubio's actions, which led to Urruchurtu's release. "Thank you to the Trump administration and the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, for their critical role in securing Pedro's release and the release of his comrades. Once again, proving that strong, principled diplomacy saves lives and advances the cause of freedom for the world," Neuer told Fox News article source: Venezuelan opposition member details harrowing 400-day captivity at UN
Fox News
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Trump's crackdown nets over 2,700 alleged members of notorious Venezuelan gang
Federal authorities have arrested more than 2,700 alleged members of Tren de Aragua (TdA), the notorious Venezuelan gang that has come to define the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration and mass deportation program, since President Donald Trump took office, officials said Friday. Attorney General Pam Bondi noted the arrests during a White House press briefing when she was asked if an undocumented baby would be an immigration enforcement priority. Bondi responded by saying violent illegal immigrants are prioritized for deportation. "Let me put it in perspective: Today marked the 2,711th arrest in our country of TdA members," she said. "Everyone in this room agrees that they are one of the most violent criminal organizations in the world." Bondi blamed the large numbers of criminal illegal immigrants in the country, as well as letting TdA gain a foothold in the U.S., on the Biden administration's lax border policies. The Trump administration has designated the gang as a terrorist organization, which Trump has used to allow the speedy deportation of its members under the Alien Enemies Act, which has been challenged in the courts. "You should all feel safer now that President Trump can deport all of these gangs and not one district court judge can think that they're emperor over this administration and his executive powers," she said Trump standing nearby. Unknown in the United States until recent years, TdA has been involved in several high-profile crimes and terrorizing a Colorado apartment complex.
Fox News
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Venezuelan opposition member details harrowing 400-day captivity at UN
Pedro Urruchurtu spoke to the United Nations Human Rights Council on Friday about what he had endured at the hands of Nicolás Maduro's regime while being forced to shelter in place for over 400 days. Urruchurtu and four other members of Venezuela's political opposition were freed in May in a successful U.S. rescue mission. He and his colleagues were effectively trapped inside the Argentine Embassy in Caracas — where the opposition members fled to, and were sheltered due to the diplomatic status of the embassy. The opposition figures were under siege by regime forces who made their lives extremely difficult due to their control of the utilities. Urruchurtu told the council he had endured "five months without electricity, three minutes of water every ten days, rifles pointed at the windows, and dogs trained to bite; only because those in power considered it a crime to direct the campaigns of Maria Corina Machado in the opposition primaries and Edmundo González in the presidential elections. Both won." "Today I am here despite the state, and not thanks to it, because if it were up to it, I would be missing or dead," Urruchurtu said. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk told the council that since May 1, 2024, the human rights situation in Venezuela has only gotten worse. The people have experienced "arbitrary detentions, violations of due process and enforced disappearances, amid continued allegations of torture and ill-treatment." Türk revealed that his office had documented 32 people — 15 of them adolescents — who reported being tortured and ill-treated in detention. He also noted that 28 people had been subjected to enforced disappearance after the country's parliamentary elections, which took place in May 2025. He said their whereabouts remain unknown and that at least 12 of them were foreign nationals who "do not have access to consular assistance." "The world must no longer look away from the brutal reality of what the once-beautiful Venezuela has become. Nicolás Maduro and his enforcers are running a criminal narco-terrorist dictatorship that jails political opponents, tortures dissidents, and crushes any hope of free expression. Pedro's voice today represents the cries of thousands of Venezuelans who remain imprisoned, persecuted or forced into exile, as slaves to the regime," UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer told Fox News Digital. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in a post on X on May 6 that the opposition members, including Urruchurtu, had been rescued in "a precise operation" and brought to the U.S. A few weeks later, Rubio met with the released opposition members. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said that Rubio had commended the Venezuelan opposition members for their "bravery in the face of Maduro's relentless repression and tyranny." Neuer also expressed gratitude for the Trump administration and Rubio's actions, which led to Urruchurtu's release. "Thank you to the Trump administration and the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, for their critical role in securing Pedro's release and the release of his comrades. Once again, proving that strong, principled diplomacy saves lives and advances the cause of freedom for the world," Neuer told Fox News Digital.
