Juan Francisco Alvarado had been sentenced on Thursday, January 22, to 15 years in prison for inciting hatred. However, on Saturday the 24th, a Court of Appeals in the state of Cojedes annulled the sentence by determining that there was insufficient evidence and ordered the trial to be repeated from scratch.
The National Union of Press Workers (SNTP) confirmed this Sunday, January 25, the release of journalism student Juan Francisco Alvarado, who had been detained for more than 10 months after being accused of the alleged crime of inciting hatred.
“After 10 months and 5 days unjustly detained, Juan Francisco Alvarado was released on the morning of this #Jan25. He was imprisoned in the Cepella GNB command, in Guanare. His sentence had been annulled this week and a new trial was ordered,” the SNTP reported through its account on the social network X, where it published a photograph of the young man with his mother.
#NOW | After 10 months and 5 days unjustly detained, Juan Francisco Alvarado was released this morning #25Jan. He was imprisoned in the Cepella GNB command, in Guanare. His sentence had been annulled this week and a new trial was ordered pic.twitter.com/MbYIhP8iND
— SNTP (@sntpvenezuela) January 25, 2026
Alvarado had been sentenced on Thursday, January 22, to 15 years in prison for inciting hatred. However, on Saturday the 24th, a Court of Appeals in the state of Cojedes annulled the sentence upon determining that there was insufficient evidence and ordered the trial to be repeated from scratch.
As explained by the SNTP, the appeal court concluded that due process violations were incurred during the process, including the absence of evidence, the lack of witnesses and the violation of the right to defense, which is why it ordered that the case be heard by another judge and another court.
The union organization explained that the student’s lawyers had filed an appeal denouncing these irregularities. “He did not commit any crime,” insisted the SNTP, which until days ago continued to demand his release despite the annulment of the sentence.
Arrested after reporting public service failures
The SNTP recalled that Alvarado was arrested on March 20, 2025 after reporting, through his social networks and through the VenApp application, the overflow of sewage in his community and the failure of electrical transformers that had not been repaired by the authorities.
The release of the student occurs in the context of a release process announced on January 8 by the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, who spoke of a “significant number” of releases without offering details about identities, numbers or conditions.
*Read also: Cojedes Court of Appeals annuls 15-year sentence against journalism student
On Friday, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez assured that 626 people have been released in the country. However, the NGO Penal Forum claims to have verified 156 releases so far, while the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD) claims to have confirmed 173 cases.
The differences between official figures and those verified by independent organizations continue to raise questions about the transparency of the process and the real situation of people who remain detained for political reasons in Venezuela.
*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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