Marino Mendoza, who worked at the Argentine Embassy, was arrested on December 12, 2024 at his home in Caracas. He went through several detention centers until his transfer to Sebin Helicoide on December 30 of that year, where he spent several months in isolation.
The Argentine Forum for Democracy reported on the afternoon of this Wednesday the 21st about the release of Marino Antonio Mendoza, who worked as a driver at the Argentine embassy in Caracas.
«We are deeply happy with this news. “We continue to demand the release of ALL political prisoners of the Chavista dictatorship,” wrote Elissa Trotta, founder of the Forum, in her account on the social network X.
Marino Antonio Mendoza Fuentes was one of the workers who remained in his usual duties after the expulsion of diplomatic personnel in August 2024. However, on December 12 of that year, officials assigned to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations of the Bolivarian National Police arrived at his home in La Pastora (Caracas) and took him into custody.
He was first detained in a police headquarters in Maripérez. From there they transferred him to the PNB cells in Boleíta, where he remained for 10 days. He was then sent to Yare III prison, but on December 30, 2024 he was transferred to Sebin Helicoide, where he was kept in isolation.
According to his mother Maricela Fuentes, the driver was charged with five crimes, including treason and terrorism. However, his family was never able to access the court file and the public defender did not offer them more information about the case.
The Argentine Foreign Ministry condemned his arrest on several occasions, and assured that “it is not an isolated incident” and corresponds to a “sustained campaign of harassment, intimidation and psychological violence against asylum seekers and employees of the Argentine mission.”
On January 8, the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, reported “a large number of releases.” Subsequently, the authorities said that there were 406 people who benefited from precautionary measures between December 2025 and January of this year.
However, human rights organizations and family committees have claimed that the number does not reflect reality, while also requesting a list with the names of all those released. Since the announcement, they have remained vigil outside different prisons in the country.
*Journalism in Venezuela is carried out in a hostile environment for the press with dozens of legal instruments in place to punish the word, especially the laws “against hate”, “against fascism” and “against the blockade.” This content was written taking into consideration the threats and limits that, consequently, have been imposed on the dissemination of information from within the country.
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