Venezuela: the mother of a political prisoner dies a few days after learning of the death of her son whom she had been looking for for a year

The mother of Venezuelan political prisoner Victor Quero Navas died this Sunday, May 17 at the age of 81, just a few days after learning that her son had died in custody nine months earlier, her relatives said. the AFP.

Carmen Navas had tirelessly searched for her son since his arrest in January 2025, without ever obtaining any answers from the Venezuelan authorities. Several NGOs had described his case as an enforced disappearance.

The Ministry of Prison Services finally admitted, in a press release published on May 7, that Victor Quero Navas, then aged 51, had died on July 24, 2025.

A particularly publicized affair

According to the NGO Foro Penal, Victor Quero Navas is the twentieth detainee to die in prison since 2014. But his case took on particular importance because the authorities seem to have hidden his death for several months, despite repeated requests from his mother.

Accompanied by agents, Carmen Navas went to her son’s grave after the official announcement. She then requested his exhumation so that a formal identification could be carried out.

She then organized a mass in his honor on Friday May 15, before a discreet burial in a cemetery in eastern Caracas.
“May God give me strength,” she whispered while sobbing during the religious ceremony.

A mother described as “courageous” and “persistent”

Edilda Zambrano, a close friend of Carmen Navas, described her a few days ago as “a wonderful woman (…) a courageous, persevering woman”, referring to the long crusade she had led in front of Venezuelan prisons and institutions.

Those close to her also explained that she had relegated her own health problems to the background in order to devote herself entirely to the search for her son.

The announcement of his death comes as interim president Delcy Rodriguez, who took the reins of power in January after the capture of Nicolas Maduro, had, under American pressure, an amnesty law allowing the release of hundreds of prisoners.