Crime in Venezuela

Crime in Venezuela is widespread, with violent crimes such as murder and kidnapping increasing annually. The United Nations has attributed crime to the poor political and economic environment in the country,[1][2] which has the second highest murder rate in the world.[3][4] Rates of crime increased rapidly during the presidency of Hugo Chávez due to the institutional instability of his Bolivarian government, underfunding of police resources and high inequality.[5] Chávez's government sought a cultural hegemony, promoting class conflict and social fragmentation in order to establish a hegemony, which in turn encouraged "criminal gangs to kill, kidnap, rob and extort".[6] By the time Chávez died in 2013, Venezuela was ranked the most insecure nation in the world by Gallup.[1]

Crime has also continued to increase under Chávez's successor, President Nicolás Maduro, who continued Chávez's policies that had disrupted Venezuela's socioeconomic status.[7][8][9][10] By 2015, crime, which was often the topic Venezuelans worried about the most according to polls, was the second largest concern compared to shortages in Venezuela.[11] Crimes related to shortages and hunger increased shortly after, with growing incidents of looting occurring throughout the country.[4][12] Most crime in Venezuela remains unpunished according to Venezuela's Prosecutor General’s Office, with 98% of crimes in Venezuela not resulting in prosecution.[13][14]

The murder rate in Venezuela had also decreased between 2017 and 2020. In 2018, Venezuela's murder rate–described as the highest in the world–had begun to decrease to 81.4 per 100,000 people according to the Venezuelan Violence Observatory (OVV), with the organization stating that this downward trend was due to the millions of Venezuelans that emigrated from the country at the time.[15] The murder rate declined even further to 60.3 in 2019.[16]

Homicide and violent crime

Murder rate (1 murder per 100,000 citizens) from 1998 to 2019. Sources: OVV, PROVEA, UN
* UN line between 2007 and 2012 is simulated missing data.

History

Punto Fijo Pact

In the early-20th century, Venezuela was limited to violent crimes occurring in rural areas.[5] In the 1950s, the rapid urbanization of the population saw some rises in violent crime.[5] In the 1960s following the restoration of democracy, insecurity rose when FALN leftist guerrillas participated in violent confrontations with the government, though such clashes subsided due to lack of public support for the guerrilla movement.[5] Between the 1960s until the late-1980s, the murder rate stood between 8 and 10 homicides per 100,000.[5] Following the "institutional crisis" surrounding the Venezuelan government and the socioeconomic issues shown during the Caracazo riots in 1989 and Hugo Chávez's 1992 coup attempts, homicides increased in Venezuela.[5] This introduced to the Venezuelan population the notion of not following the societal rules and using violence to achieve goals, such as widespread looting during the Caracazo or by attempting to commit undemocratic coups such as in 1992.[5] By 1993, Venezuela's murder rate stood at 21 homicides per 100,000 people.[5] In 1994, when Rafael Caldera became president, he attempted to strengthen Venezuela's "institution", staying in the center of political issues, performing both conservative and reformative actions that resulted in the increase of the murder rate stopping; though his popularity and the public's trust in the political system decreased.[5]

Bolivarian Revolution

When you have a functioning democracy and you have the opposition and the government in power, there's different solutions to problems; people debate, people discuss. In Venezuela, debate and discussion is not what the government is interested in, they want only loyalty. So if you have a police force, it's not about whether you're doing your job, it's about whether you're a revolutionary. So it doesn't matter what the statistics are, are you with the government or are you not with the government.

Thor Halvorssen, founder of the Human Rights Foundation[17]

Under Hugo Chávez, the "institution" of Venezuela deteriorated, with political instability, impunity and violent government language increasing.[5] According to Gareth A. Jones and Dennis Rodgers in their book Youth violence in Latin America: Gangs and Juvenile Justice in Perspective, "With the change of political regime in 1999 and the initiation of the Bolivarian Revolution, a period of transformation and political conflict began, marked by a further increase in the number and rate of violent deaths" showing that in four years, the murder rate had increased from 25 per 100,000 in 1999 to 44 per 100,000 in 2003.[18] The Bolivarian Revolution attempted to "destroy what previously existed, the status quo of society" with instability increasing.[5] The Bolivarian government then believed that violence and crime were due to poverty and inequality, though while the government boasted about reducing both poverty and inequality, the murder rate continued to increase in Venezuela.[5] The rise of murders in Venezuela following the Chávez presidency has also been attributed by experts to the corruption of Venezuelan authorities, poor gun control and a poor judiciary system.[19] The Chávez government banned private gun ownership in 2012[20][21] but overall crime rate has kept increasing since. In some cases, crime has grown so pervasive in Venezuela that the military is ordered to avoid public places during nighttime hours since criminals often attempt to steal their weapons, with robberies in the country often targeting unaware individuals using a kill first, steal later method.[22]

Escalating violent crime, especially murder, had been called "perhaps the biggest concern" of Venezuelans during the nationwide crisis.[23] According to The New Yorker magazine Venezuela had "by various measures, the world’s highest violent-crime rate" in 2017, and almost none of crimes that are reported are prosecuted.[24] InSight Crime says the crisis has "all too often been obscured by the government's reluctance to release damning crime statistics".[25] The New Yorker reporter found that even stairwells in a public hospital were not safe from robbers, who preyed on staff and patients despite the large number of security forces guarding the hospital, saying this was because the police were assigned to contain journalists who might embarrass the government with exposés on the state of the hospital; they were not assigned to protect its occupants. The police allegedly collaborated with the robbers, receiving a cut of what they stole.[24]

The U.S. Bureau of Diplomatic Security says most of the violence comes from organized street gangs, and attributes criminal activity to four factors: "often corrupt" underpaid police, an "inefficient and politicized judicial system", problems in the prison system, and widespread availability of weapons.[26]

Homicide data

Venezuela is currently among the countries with the highest murder rates in the world.[27][28] Recently, the murder rate in Venezuela is the subject of some dispute according to the Associated Press, since Bolivarian government slowly denied access to homicide statistics.[29] A non-governmental organization known as the Venezuelan Violence Observatory (OVV), which collects crime data from seven different universities around the country, provides data of homicide rates in Venezuela.[27]

In 2010, The New York Times stated that according to news reports, data from human rights groups, such as the OVV's statistics, may actually be undercounting the number of those murdered in Venezuela.[30] According to the Venezuelan non-governmental organization PROVEA, unlike other NGOs, the Venezuelan government excludes homicide data that includes fighting or police related deaths in its murder rate statistics.[28][31] PROVEA figures provided in the UN's 2014 Global Homicide Book put Venezuela's homicide rate at 53.7 murders per 100,000 inhabitants in 2012, closer to the Venezuelan government's 2012 estimate,[29] but still the second highest peacetime murder rate in the world after Honduras (estimated at 90.4).[32][33]

The OVV puts the homicide rate for 2013 at approximately 79 per 100,000[27] and the murder rate in the capital Caracas at 122 per 100,000 residents.[3] According to the Venezuelan government, the homicide rate in 2013 dropped from 50 to 39 per 100,000.[29] In 2015, the OVV's murder rate data showed an increase of the rate to 90 per 100,000 with an estimated 27,878 Venezuelans murdered adding up to nearly 20% of murders in the Latin American region.[34][35] Attorney General Luisa Ortega Díaz stated to the United Nations that the rate was 62 per 100,000 for 2014, nearly twice as high as claimed in 2013.[36] According to the World Bank, the 2016 homicide rate was 56 per 100,000, making Venezuela third in the world, after El Salvador and Honduras.[37] OVV data has 23,047 homicides committed in Venezuela in 2018, a rate of 81.4 per 100,000 people, with the decline being attributed to emigration.[37] The government says there were 60 daily homicides in 2016, and 45 daily in 2015,[38] corresponding with Venezuela's downward economic spiral, according to NBC News; the OVV says the numbers are higher.[38]

By 2018, Venezuela's murder rate–described as the highest in the world–had begun to decrease according to the OVV, with the organization stating that this downward trend was due to the millions of Venezuelans that emigrated from the country at the time.[39] The U.S. Bureau of Diplomatic Security stated that there were 73 daily violent deaths in 2018. In 2019, the murder rate declined significantly to 60.3.[40]

Other homicide data

According to Sanjuan, 95% of Venezuela's homicide victims are men with 69.69% of them being between ages 15 and 34.[18] In 2000, the homicide rate for young men was 225 per 100,000.[18] Sanjuan data from 2000 shows that in the capital city of Caracas, 92% of homicides are due to firearms and that 83% of homicide victims died near their homes, 55% in public altercations and 55% of the homicides occurred on the weekend.[18] A more recent 2014 UNICEF report titled Hidden in Plain Sight, it was stated that in Venezuela, along with other Latin American countries, the leading cause of death for males between 10 and 19 is murder.[41]

Censorship of violence

In 2009, it was reported that Venezuelan authorities would assign judicial police to Caracas area morgues to speak with families.[42][43] At that time, they would advise families not to speak to report the murder of their family member to the media in exchange to have the process of recovering the victims body in an expedited manner.[42][43] It was also reported that police would intercept the families of the victims and take them to the library of the University Institute of the Scientific Police (IUPOLC) where authorities offered families ways to "streamline procedures and advise them not to give information to the press in return for their aid".[42][43] The cover ups were possibly performed following an El Nacional cover story showing piles of corpses scattered throughout a morgue in Venezuela.[42]

Kidnappings

Number of kidnappings in Venezuela 1989–2011.
Source: CICPC[44][45][46]
* Express kidnappings may not be included in data

Director James Brabazon, stated "kidnapping crimes had skyrocketed ... after late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez freed thousands of violent prisoners as part of controversial criminal justice system reforms" while also increasing due to Colombian organized crime as well.[47][48] He further explained that criminals felt that the Venezuelan government did not care for the problems of the higher classes, which in turn gave them a sense of impunity that created a large business of kidnapping.[47] Both the rich and poor are victims of kidnapping, with criminals even fearing of being kidnapped by more powerful gangs.[47]

In leaked government INE data for kidnappings in the year 2009, the number of kidnappings were at an estimated 16,917, contrasting the CICPCs number of only 673,[45] before the Venezuelan government blocked the data.[43][48][49] According to the leaked INE report, only 1,332 investigations for kidnappings were opened or about 7% of the total kidnapping cases, with 90% of the kidnappings happening away from rural areas, 80% of all being express kidnappings and the most common victim being lower-middle or middle class Venezuelans and middle-aged men.[43]

In 2011, the Venezuelan government's statistics reported an average of two kidnappings per day, while other estimates showed 50 kidnappings per day. According to the BBC article, 4 of 5 kidnappings are express kidnappings which are not included in government statistics. The article also explains the problem of police involvement with kidnappings, with the Venezuelan government admitting that 20% of crimes involve authorities and criminologist Mármol García stating that 90% of kidnappings go unreported in Venezuela.[50] In 2013, consulting firm Control Risk ranked Venezuela 5th in the world for kidnappings, only behind Mexico, India, Nigeria and Pakistan. The report stated that 33% of kidnappings occurred in the capital city of Caracas and that hundreds of kidnappings happen every year.[51] News.com.au called Venezuela capital "the kidnap capital of the world" in 2013, noting that Venezuela had the highest kidnapping rate in the world and that 5 people were kidnapped for a ransom every day.[47]

False or "virtual" kidnappings are also used in Venezuela.[52] Criminals will cut off access to family members and then report to the family that they have been kidnapped, demanding a ransom without actually imprisoning an individual.[52] In Venezuela's prisons, inmates will use "telemarketing" strategies, creating fear in individuals so that they will pay before possibly being kidnapped.[52]

There is no reliable data on kidnapping in Venezuela and available data is considered an underestimate;[53][54] it is against the law to pay ransom, and according to criminologists, at least 80% of kidnappings are not reported for fear of retaliation,[55] or because relatives prefer to negotiate, hoping the hostage will be released and fearing they will be killed if authorities are contacted.[53][54] Available data underestimates the amount of express kidnapping, where victims are typically released in less than two days after relatives pay a quick ransom.[53][54] Most express kidnapping victims are released, but in 2016, 18 were killed.[53] At least 80% of kidnappings occur in a limited area around Caracas and including Miranda State. In the areas where most kidnappings occur, the government set up so-called "peace zones" where official police withdrew and gangs took over;[53] according to NBC News, "experts say the government has armed these groups ... [who] ... control large territories, financed through extortion and the drug trade".[54]

Authorities involved in kidnappings

Many kidnappings are not reported to police in Venezuela since they are not trusted.[52] According to Anthony Daquín, former adviser to the Minister of Interior and Justice of Venezuela, "[s]taff of the Directorate of Military Counterintelligence and SEBIN (Bolivarian National Intelligence Service) operate these bands kidnapping and extortion".[56] According to experts, kidnappings and torture by the Directorate of Military Counterintelligence increased during the 8 year tenure of Hugo Carvajal.[56]

Combatting kidnappings

According to Brabazon, businesses, families and friends gather money and put it aside for possibly being used to pay kidnapping ransoms.[48] Wealthy Venezuelans invest in armored vehicles and bodyguards while middle class Venezuelans change routes to work, never wear jewelry in public and never travel on foot alone.[48] Since police are not trusted by Venezuelans, kidnappings are usually not reported and cannot be combatted by authorities.[52]

Drug trade

Aircraft activity of drug trafficking suspects tracked by the United States Southern Command showing multiple drug flights from Venezuela in 2010.

Further information: Illegal drug trade in Venezuela

Venezuela is a significant route for drug trafficking, with Colombian cocaine and other drugs transiting Venezuela towards the United States and Europe. Venezuela ranks fourth in the world for cocaine seizures, behind Colombia, the United States, and Panama.[57]

In 2007, authorities in Colombia claimed that through laptops they had seized on a raid against Raul Reyes, they found documents purporting to show that Hugo Chávez offered payments of as much as $300 million USD to the FARC.[58] According to Interpol, the files found by Colombian forces were considered to be authentic.[59]

Independent analyses of the documents by a number of U.S. academics and journalists have challenged the Colombian interpretation of the documents, accusing the Colombian government of exaggerating their contents.[60][61] According to Greg Palast, the claim about Chavez's $300 million is based on the following (translated) sentence: "With relation to the 300, which from now on we will call 'dossier', efforts are now going forward at the instructions of the cojo [slang term for 'cripple'], which I will explain in a separate note." Palast suggests that the "300" is supposedly a reference to "300 prisoners" (the number involved in a FARC prisoner exchange) and not "300 million", as Raul Reyes was one of the Farc's main negotiators for prisoner exchanges.[60]

The nephews of President Nicolás Maduro, Efraín Antonio Campo Flores and Francisco Flores de Freitas, after their arrest by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration on 10 November 2015.

In 2008, the U.S. Department of Treasury accused two senior Venezuelan government officials and one former official of providing material assistance for drug-trafficking operations carried out by the FARC guerrilla group in Colombia.[62] In March 2012, Venezuela's National Assembly removed Supreme Court Justice Eladio Aponte Aponte from his post after an investigation revealed alleged ties to drug-trafficking;[63] on the day he was to face questioning, Aponte Aponte fled the country, and has sought refuge in the U.S., where he began to cooperate with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Department of Justice.[64][65][66] Aponte says that, while serving as a judge, he was forced to acquit an army commander who had connections with a 2 metric ton shipment of cocaine. Aponte also claimed that Henry Rangel, former defense minister of Venezuela and General Clíver Alcalá Cordones were both involved with the drug trade in Venezuela.[65] Venezuelan officials have also been allegedly working with Mexican drug cartels.[65]

In September 2013, an incident involving men from the Venezuelan National Guard placing 31 suitcases containing 1.3 tons of cocaine on a Paris flight astonished French authorities.[65] On 15 February 2014, a commander for the Guard was stopped while driving to Valencia with his family and was arrested for having 554 kilos of cocaine in his possession.[67]

Two nephews of Maduro's wife Cilia Flores, Efraín Antonio Campo Flores and Francisco Flores de Freitas, were involved in the narcosobrinos incident and found guilty for their alleged involvement in illicit activities such as drug trafficking in November 2016, with some of their funds possibly assisting President Maduro's presidential campaign in the 2013 Venezuelan presidential election and potentially for the 2015 Venezuelan parliamentary elections, with the funds mainly used to "help their family stay in power".[68][69][70] One informant stated that the two would often fly out of Terminal 4 of Simon Bolivar International Airport, a terminal reserved for the president.[68][69] Due to the fact that the "sobrinos" (nephews in Spanish) of Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores were arrested for narcotics trafficking, the media described the nephews as the narcosobrinos.[71][72][73][74][75][76]

Human trafficking

According to the Trafficking in Persons Report 2014 by the State Department of the United States, "Venezuela is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor". The State Department also states that the "Government of Venezuela does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking" explaining that Venezuelan authorities trained government officials about trafficking, but the Venezuelan government "did not publicly document progress on prosecutions and convictions of trafficking offenders or on victim identification and assistance". Due to the Venezuelan government not complying to the standards of stopping human trafficking, the State Department placed Venezuelan on its "black list" as a Tier 3 country, which opened the possibility of Venezuela facing sanctions.[77][78][79]

Organized crime

"Peace zones", seen in red, offered to gangs by the Bolivarian government

There was little history of organized crime in Venezuela until the start of the Bolivarian Revolution.[80] The Bolivarian government was seen as being lenient on crime and justifying the criminals by saying they were poor and exploited.[80] In 2013, the government negotiated with large criminal gangs on how to prevent violence and agreed to avoid policing gang territory in what were known as "peace zones", reinforcing criminal behaviors and making gang practices de facto law.[81] According to InSight Crime, there are over a dozen mega-gangs in Venezuela, with some having up to 300 members.[80]

Due to the largely unofficial economy that exists in Venezuela in which nearly every citizen participates, organized crime thrived as smuggling has been assisted by Colombian gangs, the Bolivarian National Guard and government officials.[80]

At least 80% of kidnappings occur in a limited area around Caracas and including Miranda State. Most kidnappings occur around "peace zones" where official police withdrew and gangs took over;[53] according to NBC News, "experts say the government has armed these groups ... [who] ... control large territories, financed through extortion and the drug trade".[54]

Colectivos

El País reported in 2014 that Chávez had years earlier assigned colectivos to be "the armed wing of the Bolivarian Revolution" for the Venezuelan government, giving them weapons, communication systems, motorcycles and surveillance equipment to exercise control in the hills of Caracas where police are forbidden entry.[82] In 2006, they received arms and funding from the state when they were brought under the government's community councils.[83] Chávez eliminated the Metropolitan Police in 2011, turning security over to the colectivos in some Caracas barrios.[83] Some weapons given to the groups include assault rifles, submachine guns and grenades.[82] Despite the Venezuelan government's statements saying that only official authorities can carry weapons for the defense of Venezuela, colectivos are armed with automatic rifles such as AK-47s, submachine guns, fragmentation grenades, and tear gas.[84][85]

During the 2014 Venezuelan protests against Maduro, colectivos acted against the opposition protesters.[86] The Civil Association for Citizen Control said that more than half of those killed during the protests were killed by colectivos.[87] Human Rights Watch described colectivos as "armed gangs who use violence with impunity" to harass political opponents of the Venezuelan government.[88][89] Amnesty International calls them "armed pro-government supporters who are tolerated or supported by the authorities".[90] An Organization of American States report on human rights violations in Venezuela stated that colectivos murdered at least 131 individuals between 2014 and 2017 during the anti-government protests.[91]

Colectivos sometimes provide protection from crime in some neighborhoods they are committed to,[92] though some neighborhoods report that colectivos attack neighbors themselves.[93] As colectivos attempted to gain independence from the government, they began "controlling organized crime like drug trafficking in Caracas barrios".[94] According to the International Crisis Group, colectivos may be involved in drug trafficking, arms dealing, and car theft. Phil Gunson, a freelance reporter for foreign media, states that, "It's no secret that many colectivos engage in criminal activities." Gunson reported that colectivos combat criminal gangs in neighborhoods and take over the previous gang's business in crime and also take over buildings already owned by individuals and collect rent from the owners. Colectivos are thought to be partially responsible for the increase in the Venezuelan murder rate, according to the Metropolitan Observatory on Citizen Security.[95] FOX News says that, "Much of the crime has been attributed by analysts to government-backed gangs—referred to in Spanish as “colectivos”—who were deliberately put in place by the government", and that "while Venezuelan citizens were stripped of their legal recourse to bear arms, the 'collectivos'—established by Chavez when came to power—were legally locked and loaded," critics say.[96] Some colectivos patrol the 23 de Enero barrio on motorcycles, masked and armed, supposedly to protect the neighborhood from criminals such as drug dealers.[85] According to ABC News, "it is widely believed that colectivos kill drug traffickers who do not obey their orders".[85]

During the 2019 Venezuelan blackouts in March, Maduro called on the armed paramilitary gangs, saying, "The time has come for active resistance".[97] As blackouts continued, on 31 March, citizens protested the lack of electricity and water in Caracas and other cities; Maduro called again on the colectivos, asking them "to defend the peace of every barrio, of every block".[98] Videos circulated on social media showing colectivos threatening protesters and shooting in the streets;[99] two protestors were shot.[98]

Corruption

Further information: Corruption in Venezuela

Corruption in Venezuela is high by world standards, and was so for much of the 20th century. The discovery of oil had worsened political corruption,[100] and by the late 1970s, Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonso's description of oil as "the Devil's excrement" had become a common expression in Venezuela.[101] Venezuela has been ranked one of the most corrupt countries on the Corruption Perceptions Index since the survey started in 1995. The 2010 ranking placed Venezuela at number 164, out of 178 ranked countries.[102]

According to some sources, Venezuela's corruption includes widespread corruption in the police force.[103] Many victims are afraid to report crimes to the police because most officers are involved with criminals and may bring even more harm to the victims[104] with a 2013 Gallup study showing that only 26% of Venezuelans have faith in their local police.[1] Human Rights Watch claims that the "police commit one of every five crimes" and that thousands of people have been killed by police officers acting with impunity (only 3% of officers have been charged in cases against them).[105] The Metropolitan Police force in Caracas was so corrupt that it was accused of assisting some of the 17,000 kidnappings.[106] Medium says that the Venezuelan police are "seen as brutal and corrupt more likely to rob you than help".[107]

Petty crime and thefts

Crime rates are higher in 'barrios' or 'ranchos' (slum areas)[108] and after dark.[109] Petty crime such as pick-pocketing is prevalent, particularly in public transport terminals in Caracas.[110] As a result of the high levels of crime, Venezuelans were forced to change their ways of life due to the large insecurities they continuously experienced.[111] 2014 Gallup polls showed that only 19% of Venezuelans felt safe walking alone at night, with nearly one quarter of the respondents stating that they or a household member had money stolen from them in the past year.[1]

While Venezuelans were suffering from shortages in Venezuela, the occasional looting of trucks full of goods became more common in the country with the robberies being committed by criminal gangs. Originally, looters would wait for trucks to crash and loot the scene, though recently trucks have been attacked instead. In one incident involving a crashed truck, hundreds of men, women and children looted the vehicle.[13] In July 2015, BBC News stated that due to the common shortages in Venezuela, every week there are videos shared online showing Venezuelans looting supermarkets and trucks for food.[112] In June 2016, it was reported that the town of Cumaná was under effective curfew after an outbreak of mass looting.[113] In 2017, it was revealed that even military personnel became targets, with criminals instead beginning to just kill all of their victims before stealing their belongings, introducing a more violent face to theft in the country.[22] Foreign visitors

Venezuela is especially dangerous toward foreign travelers and investors who are visiting. This is due to Venezuela's economic problems. The United States State Department and the Government of Canada have warned foreign visitors that they may be subjected to armed robbery, kidnapping and murder.[114][115] In 2014, former Miss Venezuela 2004 winner Monica Spear and her husband were murdered with her 5 year old daughter being shot while visiting, and an elderly German tourist was murdered only a few weeks later.[116][117]

Crime prevention

State crime prevention initiatives

During the presidency of the Hugo Chávez, more than 20 programs were created attempting to deter crime, though insecurity continued to increase following their implementation.[118] In 2009, the Venezuelan government created a security force called the Bolivarian National Police as well as a new Experimental Security University. Human rights groups suggest that the government's policing efforts are too "timid".[119][105] The United Nations has stated that the Venezuelan government is lacking 20,000 investigative police.[50]

Chávez's successor, Nicolás Maduro, has also initiated programs trying to combat crime. Under his administration, extrajudicial killings rose dramatically with over 8,000 Venezuelans being killed by state authorities between 2015 and 2017.[120]

Ley contra el Secuestro y la Extorsión

In 2008, the National Assembly passed the Law Against Kidnapping and Extortion (Ley contra el Secuestro y la Extorsión), a law that imposes penalties of up to 30 years in prison to address a kidnapping situation that was not covered by a specific law. Despite the introduction of the new law, the majority of cases are not resolved and only received the Venezuelan government's attention in high-profile cases.[50]

Plan Patria Segura

On 13 May 2013, President Nicolas Maduro initiated Plan Patria Segura saying "we have decided to fight to build a secure homeland".[121] The plan, created by Miguel Rodríguez Torres,[122] included the placement of 37,000 authorities throughout the country. The goal of Plan Patria Segura to disarm, prevent organized crime and drug enforcement. The methods of accomplishing these tasks were through surveillance, checking documents, verification checkpoints and to help guide communities.[123] Some have criticized Plan Patria Segura calling it a failure after crime continued to increase following its implementation.[124][125][126]

Days after the replacement of the plan's creator Miguel Rodríguez Torres by Carmen Meléndez as Minister of the Popular Power for Interior, Justice and Peace,[127] Melendez announced that the Venezuelan government would relaunch Plan Patria Segura for a second time.[128]

Disarmament

In 2013, it was reported that Venezuela was one of the most weaponized areas in the world, with one firearm per two citizens.[48] On 22 September 2014, President Maduro announced that his government would invest $47 million to create 60 new disarmament centers, and $39 million to fund a plan under which soldiers would patrol the most dangerous neighborhoods.[129] In a Cabo Vadillo (es) episode revealing crime in Caracas, it is stated that at the time of recording in 2014, there were over 5 million illegal firearms in a city of about 5 million people.[130] Colectivos stated to the Venezuelan government that they were not going to participate in the disarmament plan, stating that they were groups involved with the Bolivarian Revolution and that criminal gangs should instead be focused on.[122]

Judicial system

Venezuela's judicial system has been ranked the most corrupt in the world by Transparency International[131] and according to the World Justice Project's Rule of Law Index 2015, Venezuela had the worst rule of law in the world; having the third worst justice system in the world and the worst criminal justice system in the world.[132]

Public opinion

The majority of Venezuelans surveyed in the Rule of Law Index 2015 believed the judicial system was corrupt with 98% believing the correctional system was ineffective while 100% thought the government had improper influence in the criminal justice system.[132] The majority of Venezuelans also believed that there was a poor due process of law while also thinking that the criminal justice system was not timely and judgement was ineffective.[132]

Prisons

Venezuelan prisons are led by "pranes" or criminal bosses that operate while jailed. During the tenure of Minister of Prison Services Iris Varela, pranes were given control of prisons with the belief that they would maintain leadership and lower violence. Instead, pranes run criminal organizations outside of prisons and receive security within their facilities.[80]

In the World Report 2014 by Human Rights Watch, the organization stated that "Venezuelan prisons are among the most violent in Latin America". They explained that "Weak security, deteriorating infrastructure, overcrowding, insufficient and poorly trained guards, and corruption allow armed gangs to effectively control prisons". They also mentioned that hundreds of violent deaths occur at Venezuelan prisons each year.[133] In 2014, the UN called the state of the Venezuelan prison system "a tragedy".[134]

There are a total of 34 prisons in Venezuela holding about 50,000 inmates.[135] According to the Venezuelan Observatory of Prisons (OVP), from 1999 to 2015, there were 22,998 violent incidents, with 16,417 injured and 6,581 inmates killed.[136] Their occupancy level is at a shocking 153.9% according to 2016 studies. In the year 2000, the rate was only 58 per 100,000 people. Jumping to the year 2014, the rate was 166, and as of 2016 the rate was at 173 [137]

In 2018, Minister of Prison Service Iris Varela stated that when "[c]omparing the Venezuelan prison system with other penitentiary systems in the world, I can guarantee that this is the best in the world, because there have been no incidents", ignoring at least the April 2018 fire that occurred in the police station jails in Valencia, Carabobo where 68 people died per official figures.[138]

The Acarigua prison riot in 2019, left 29 prisoners dead, and 19 guards injured.[139] Over 40 inmates were killed and an unknown number of guards and inmates were wounded during a May 2020 incident at Los Llanos jail near the city of Guanare. Venezuelan authorities claimed the incident was an escape attempt by inmates, while the Venezuelan Prison Observatory noted the inmates were angry over insufficient food and water and called for an investigation.[140]

Lack of state authority

In Venezuelan prisons, there are reports of prisoners having easy access to firearms, drugs and alcohol.[141] According to Alessio Bruni of the United Nations Committee against Torture, "a typical problem of the prison system is gun violence, nearly circulating freely within prisons, causing hundreds and hundreds of people killed every year" with the UN committee alarmed at reports that between 2004 and 2014, 4,791 inmates were killed and 9,931 injured.[134]

Carlos Nieto, head of Window to Freedom, alleges that heads of gangs acquire military weapons from the state saying, “They have the types of weapons that can only be obtained by the country’s armed forces. ... No one else has these.” Use of internet and mobile phones are also a commonplace where criminals can take part in street crime while in prison. One prisoner explained how, “If the guards mess with us, we shoot them” and that he had "seen a man have his head cut off and people play football with it.”[141]

In a Journeyman Pictures documentary titled Venezuela - Party Prison, a reporter visits San Antonio Prison on Margarita Island. The prison is described as a "paradise", with a community including pools, bars, a boxing ring and many other accommodations for any visitor of prisoners who can stay the night at the prison for up to three days per week. San Antonio Prison was controlled by El Conejo (The Rabbit), a powerful jailed drug trafficker who makes his "enforcers" patrol the prison. In an interview with Prison Minister Iris Varela, the minister explained how all prisons were under her control and that there was no anarchy. Varela was also known to be acquainted with El Conejo, as critic Carlos Nieto showed the reporter a photo of Varela with El Conejo on his bed. Professor Neelie Perez from the University of Caracas explained how it is difficult for the government to control prisons without resorting to violence, therefore recognizing and legitimizing high ranking prisoners as heads of prisons. Perez also states that evidence shows that crime is organized from within these prisons.[142][143]

Edgardo Lander, a sociologist and professor at the Central University of Venezuela with a PhD in sociology from Harvard University explained that Venezuelan prisons are "practically a school for criminals" since young inmates come out "more sort of trained and hardened than when they went in". He also explained that prison are controlled by gangs and that "very little has been done" to control them.[144]

"El Coliseo"

In Venezuelan prisons, inmates partake in gladiatorial matches to settle disputes. In 2011, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States denounced the practice of "The Coliseum" saying "The Commission reiterates to the State the need to take immediate and effective steps to prevent such incidents from happening again" after two inmates died and 54 more were injured from these practices.[145]

However a year later, one "Coliseum" in Uribana left 2 dead and 128 injured. Those injured had to be assisted by a church in the area.[146][147]

Mismanaged facilities

In 2014, on average, Venezuelan prisons held 231% of their capacity, according to Alessio Bruni of the U.N. Committee against Torture. Bruni provided the example of the Tocorón prison that in 2013 was holding 7,000 prisoners despite having been designed for 750.[134]

Venezuelan rights groups report that the 34 prisons in Venezuela hold 50,000 people but are only supposed to hold about one-third of that. In 2012, La Planta, a prison built in 1964 with a capacity of 350 inmates, held almost 2,500 inmates with many armed with heavy weapons.[135]

By 2018 deep into the crisis in Bolivarian Venezuela, prisoners suffered from starvation and communicable diseases in addition to violence as a result of the mismanagement and overcrowding of prisons.[148]

In May 2020, inmates rioted at the Llanos Penitentiary Center in Guanare, leading to 40 deaths. The facility had been overcrowded by more than three times its designed capacity.[149]

See also

• Law enforcement in Venezuela
• Crime and violence in Latin America

Bibliography

• World Drug Report 2010 Statistical Annex: Drug seizures (PDF). United Nations. 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
• Trafficking in Persons Report 2014 (PDF). United States Department of State. 2014. pp. 407–08. Retrieved 21 June 2014.

References

1. Sonnenschein, Jan. "Latin America Scores Lowest on Security". Gallup. Gallup. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
2. "Venezuela es el país más inseguro del mundo, según un estudio". El Espectador (in Spanish). El Espectador. 21 August 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
3. "Venezuela Country Specific Information". United States Department of State. Archived from the original on 11 January 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2014.
4. "With 28,479 killings, Venezuela takes second spot on world murder ranking". El País. 29 December 2016. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
5. Briceño-León, Roberto. "Three phases of homicidal violence in Venezuela". SciELO. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
6. Werlau, Maria C. (August 2014). "VENEZUELA'S CRIMINAL GANGS: Warriors of Cultural Revolution". World Affairs. 177 (2): 90–96.
7. Kevin Voigt (6 March 2013). "Chavez leaves Venezuelan economy more equal, less stable". CNN. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
8. Corrales, Javier (7 March 2013). "The House That Chavez Built". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
9. Siegel, Robert (25 December 2014). "For Venezuela, Drop In Global Oil Prices Could Be Catastrophic". NPR. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
10. Scharfenberg, Ewald (1 February 2015). "Volver a ser pobre en Venezuela" (in Spanish). El Pais. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
11. Pardo, Daniel (27 May 2015). "Why Venezuelans worry more about food than crime". BBC News. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
12. Oré, Diego (6 August 2015). "Looting and violence on the rise in Venezuela supermarkets". Reuters. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
13. Camacho, Carlos (4 June 2015). "On Venezuela's highways, a disabled truck increasingly means a looted truck". Fox News. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
14. Finnegan, William (14 November 2016). "Venezuela, A Failing State". The New Yorker. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
15. "Venezuela murder rate dips, partly due to migration: monitoring group". Reuters. 27 December 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
16. "Venezuela, otra vez el país más peligroso de América Latina: registró 16.506 muertes violentas en 2019". Infobae (in Spanish). 27 December 2019. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
17. Rueda, Manuel (8 January 2014). "How Did Venezuela Become So Violent?n". Fusion TV. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
18. Jones, edited by Gareth A.; Rodgers, Dennis (2008). Youth violence in Latin America : gangs and juvenile justice in perspective (1st ed.). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 84–85. ISBN 9780230600560.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
19. Rueda, Manuel (6 April 2015). "Venezuelan beauty queen gets carjacked at gunpoint". Fusion. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
20. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-18288430
22. Delgado, Antonio Maria (28 November 2017). "Crime is so bad in Venezuela that even soldiers were ordered to avoid driving at night". The Miami Herald. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
23. Manetto, Francesco (7 June 2018). "Los venezolanos creen vivir en el país más peligroso del mundo" [Venezuelans believe they live in the most dangerous country in the world] (in Spanish). El País. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
24. Finnegan, William (14 November 2016). "Venezuela, a failing state". The New Yorker. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
25. Bargent, James (30 September 2016). "Reports of kidnapping in Venezuela nearly double in 2016". InSight Crime. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
26. "Venezuela 2018 Crime & Safety Report". Overseas Security Advisory Council, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, U.S. Department of State. 2 April 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
27. Caselli, Irene (9 January 2014). "Venezuela rocked by killing of beauty queen Monica Spear". BBC. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
28. Lozano, Daniel. "Venezuela se desangra: récord de homicidios en 2013". Diario las Americas. Archived from the original on 9 July 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
29. "Venezuela's Homicide Rate Rises, NGO's Report Says". Associated Press. 26 December 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
30. Romero, Simon (22 August 2010). "Venezuela, More Deadly Than Iraq, Wonders Why". New York Times. Retrieved 10 January 2014.
31. "Venezuela sufre 2000 muertes violentas por mes". La Nacion. 27 December 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
32. "2014 Global Homicide Book" (PDF). UNODC.
33. "Venezuela's Maduro launches civilian disarmament plan". BBC News. 22 September 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
34. "Observer group: Venezuelan homicide rate rose in 2015, rivaling El Salvador as world's highest". Fox News. Associated Press. 28 December 2015. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
35. "Venezuela first among the most violent countries in LatAm". El Universal. El Universal. 29 December 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
36. Molina, Thabata (7 July 2015). "Attorney General's UN Gaffe Reveals Venezuela's Record-High Murder Rate Violence at Epidemic Levels Based on Government's Own Figures". PanAm Post. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
37. "Venezuela murder rate dips, partly due to migration: monitoring group". Reuters. 27 December 2018.
38. Sesin, Carmen (18 May 2017). "Venezuela's escalating violence seen in killing of Carolina Herrera's nephew". NBC News. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
39. "Venezuela murder rate dips, partly due to migration: monitoring group". Reuters. 27 December 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
40. "Venezuela, otra vez el país más peligroso de América Latina: registró 16.506 muertes violentas en 2019". Infobae (in Spanish). 27 December 2019. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
41. "One in 10 girls sexually abused worldwide: UN". Business Insider. 5 September 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
42. "Venezuela favorece a los familiares de fallecidos que no informan a la prensa". El Mundo. 22 August 2010. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
43. "Hubo 16,917 secuestros en 2009 en Venezuela". La Prensa. 23 August 2010. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
44. "SeguridadPúblicayPrivada VenezuelayBolivia" (PDF). Oas.org. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
45. "Venezuela: Gravísima Crisis de Seguridad Pública by Lexys Rendon". ISSUU.com. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
46. "Según el Cicpc el 2011 cerró con 1.150 secuestros en todo el país – Sucesos". Eluniversal.com. 4 January 2012. Archived from the original on 8 January 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
47. "Welcome to Venezuela, the kidnap capital of the world". News.com.au. 13 November 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
48. Brabazon, James (10 October 2013). "Taking no prisoners in the kidnap capital of the world: On the streets of Caracas with an elite police squad". The Independent. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
49. "EN EL 2009 SE COMETIERON MÁS DE 16.000 SECUESTROS EN VENEZUELA, SEGÚN EL GOBIERNO LOCAL". ABC Color. Noticias24. 22 August 2010. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
50. Paullier, Juan (14 November 2011). "Venezuela y los secuestros diarios que no se reportan". BBC. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
51. Molina, Thabata (14 December 2013). "Ubican a Venezuela en el quinto lugar en riesgo de secuestros". El Universal. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
52. Inskeep, Steve (6 June 2013). "For Venezuelans, Kidnappings Are Simply Business As Usual". NPR. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
53. Bargent, James (30 September 2016). "Reports of kidnapping in Venezuela nearly double in 2016". InSight Crime. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
54. Sesin, Carmen (18 May 2017). "Venezuela's escalating violence seen in killing of Carolina Herrera's nephew". NBC News. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
55. "Venezuela 2018 Crime & Safety Report". Overseas Security Advisory Council, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, U.S. Department of State. 2 April 2018. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
56. Maria Delgado, Antonio (29 December 2014). "Agentes de inteligencia venezolanos operan bandas de secuestro y extorsión". El Nuevo Herald. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
57. World Drug Report 2010 Statistical Annex: Drug seizures (PDF). United Nations. 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
58. Padgett, Tim (3 September 2008). "Chávez and the Cash-Filled Suitcase". TIME. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
59. Forero, Juan (16 May 2008). "FARC Computer Files Are Authentic, Interpol Probe Finds". Washington Post. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
60. Palast, Greg (16 May 2008). "$300 Million From Chavez to FARC a Fake". Tomaine.com/Ourfuture.org. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
61. "Interpol Analysis of FARC Laptop Authenticity Will Not "Prove" Links Between Venezuela, Rebels". derechos.org. 25 April 2008. Retrieved 2 August 2014.
62. "Treasury Targets Venezuelan Government Officials Supporting the FARC". Press Release. United States Department of Treasury. Retrieved 5 March 2014.
63. "National Assembly removes Justice Aponte Aponte". 21 March 2012. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
64. "Venezuelan official: Ex-judge 'sold his soul' to the DEA". 19 April 2002. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
65. Meza, Alfredo (26 September 2013). "Corrupt military officials helping Venezuela drug trade flourish". El Pais. Retrieved 5 March 2014.
66. "Fuente AP: Aponte Aponte está en contacto con la DEA. Se espera su declaración pública en EE UU". 9 May 2012. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
67. Sanchez, Nora (15 February 2014). "Detienen a comandante de la Milicia con cargamento de drogas". El Universal. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
68. Yagoub, Mimi. "Venezuela Military Officials Piloted Drug Plane". InSight Crime. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
69. Blasco, Emili J. (19 November 2015). "La Casa Militar de Maduro custodió el traslado de droga de sus sobrinos". ABC. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
70. Raymond, Nate (19 November 2016). "Venezuelan first lady's nephews convicted in U.S. drug trial". Reuters. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
71. "Narcosobrinos Archivo". La Patilla. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
72. "EEUU: postergaron una vez más la audiencia de los narcosobrinos de Maduro | Nicolás Maduro, Narcotráfico en Venezuela, Nueva York - América". Infobae. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
73. "Restan días para el juicio de los "narcosobrinos"". Venezuela al Día. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
74. Carrillo Mazzali, Jessica. "Difieren audiencia del caso de los "narcosobrinos" de Cilia". Tal Cual. Archived from the original on 2 May 2016. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
75. "La mujer de Maduro acusa a la DEA de secuestrar a sus "narcosobrinos"". ABC (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 May 2016.
76. Lozano, Daniel. "Nicolás Maduro, seis días de silencio en torno al escándalo de los 'narcosobrinos'". El Mundo. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
77. Trafficking in Persons Report 2014 (PDF). United States Department of State. 20 June 2014. pp. 407–08. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
78. Pennington, Matthew (20 June 2014). "US Blacklists Thailand, Malaysia Over Trafficking". ABC News. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
79. "The United States blacklists Venezuela in human trafficking". El Universal. 20 June 2014. Archived from the original on 25 June 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2014.
80. Venezuela: A Mafia State?. Medellin, Colombia: InSight Crime. 2018. pp. 3–84.
81. "10 claves para entender las Zonas de Paz". Runrunes. 15 July 2015. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
82. "Así operan los 'colectivos', las fuerzas paramilitares chavistas de Venezuela" [This is how the 'collectives', the Venezuelan Chavista paramilitary forces, operate]. El Pais. 23 February 2014. Archived from the original on 7 April 2019. Retrieved 20 March 2014.
83. "The devolution of state power: The 'Colectivos'". Insight Crime. 18 May 2018. Retrieved 28 February 2019. Also available in Spanish.
84. Gurney, Kyra. "Venezuela's Leftist Collectives: Criminals or Revolutionaries?". InSight Crime. Archived from the original on 26 November 2014. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
85. Markovits, Martin and Manuel Rueda (27 March 2013). "Venezuela election is a high stakes affair for local vigilante groups". ABC News. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
86. "Colectivos de paz accionan armas de fuego en la Rómulo Gallegos ante mirada de la GNB". La Patilla. 19 February 2014. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
87. "Colectivos estarían involucrados e12 homicidios 25/03/14Caracas". Asociacion Civil Control Ciudadano. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
88. Wallis, Dan (13 February 2014). "Venezuela violence puts focus on militant 'colectivo' groups". Retrieved 20 March 2014.
89. Tapia Reynolds, Gioconda. "Venezuela marcada por la violencia". Voice of America. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
90. "Nights of terror: Attacks and illegal raids on homes in Venezuela" (PDF). Amnesty International. 2017. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
91. "OAS says to present evidence of Venezuela rights violations to The Hague". Reuters. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
92. "Venezuela is on borrowed time". Business Insider. 29 November 2014. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
93. "Colectivos en Venezuela: ¿Organizaciones sociales o criminales?". NTN24. 8 October 2014. Archived from the original on 10 October 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
94. Torres, Patricia and Nicholas Casey (22 April 2017). "Armed civilian bands in Venezuela prop up unpopular president". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
95. Stone, Hannah. "Political Divisions Fuel Venezuela's Most Violent Year". InSight Crime. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
96. McKay, Hollie (14 December 2018). "Venezuelans regret gun ban, 'a declaration of war against an unarmed population'". FOX News. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
97. Phillips, Tom (12 March 2019). "US pulls all staff from Venezuela as Maduro blames blackout on 'demonic' Trump plot". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
98. Phillips, Tom (1 April 2019). "Venezuela: Maduro calls on armed groups to keep order amid electricity rationing". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
99. Torchia, Christopher (1 April 2019). "Venezuela's Maduro announces power rationing amid outages". The Washington Post. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
100. From 1917, "greater awareness of the country's oil potential had the pernicious effect of increasing the corruption and intrigue amongst Gomez's family and entourage, the consequences of which would be felt up to 1935 – B. S. McBeth (2002), Juan Vicente Gómez and the Oil Companies in Venezuela, 1908–1935, Cambridge University Press, p17.
101. "The perception of petroleum as the cause of Venezuela's corruption had become widespread during this period." – Coronil, F. (1988), The magical state: nature, money, and modernity in Venezuela, p353
102. El Universal, 21 January 2011, The truth of Pdval Archived 14 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine
103. Reel, M. "Crime Brings Venezuelans Into Streets". Washington Post (10 May 2006), p. A17. Accessed 24 June 2006.
104. Wills, Santiago (10 July 2013). "The World Is Getting More Corrupt, and These Are the 5 Worst Offenders". Fusion. Archived from the original on 25 August 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
105. "World Report 2012: Venezuela". Report. Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
106. "Venezuela: Police corruption blamed for kidnapping epidemic". The Scotsman. 30 May 2011. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
107. Beckhusen, Robert (20 February 2014). "Pro-Government Motorcycle Militias Terrorize Venezuela". Medium. Retrieved 21 March 2014.
108. "Venezuela 2015 Crime and Safety Report". OSAC. United States Department of State Bureau of Diplomatic Security. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
109. "Foreign travel advice, Venezuela". UK Government. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
110. "Venezuela 2016 Crime & Safety Report". OSAC. United States Department of State Bureau of Diplomatic Security. 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
111. "Insecurity has changed the way of life". El Tiempo. 27 April 2014. Archived from the original on 28 April 2014. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
112. "How videos of supermarket raids show what life is like in Venezuela". BBC News. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
113. Gibbs, Stephen (15 June 2016). "Venezuelan city under effective curfew after mass looting". the Guardian. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
114. "Venezuela Travel Warning". United States Department of State. Archived from the original on 30 January 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
115. "Venezuela". Government of Canada. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
116. "Venezuelan soap star Monica Spear, ex-husband murdered". NBC News. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
117. "German tourist, 76, shot dead on Venezuelan island". Reuters. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
118. Clarembaux, Patricia; Tovar, Ernesto (29 October 2014). "La reforma policial en Venezuela, tarea inconclusa del chavismo". El Nuevo Herald. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
119. Romero, Simon (22 August 2010). "Venezuela, More Deadly Than Iraq, Wonders Why". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2014.
120. "Crímenes brutales en Venezuela: Ejecuciones extrajudiciales dejan más de ocho mil muertos". La Patilla (in Spanish). 13 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
121. "Hoy comienza el Plan Patria Segura: "La Fanb sale a la calle a proteger el pueblo" (+video)". 13 May 2013. Noticias24. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
122. "Colectivos le dicen NO al plan de desarme del gobierno bolivariano". La Patilla. 5 November 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
123. "Plan Patria Segura". Gobierno Bolivariano de Venezuela. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
124. Magolis, Mac (9 January 2014). "Former Miss Venezuela Murdered In Roadside Attack". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
125. "Diciembre fue el mes más violento del 2014, 500 muertos solo en Caracas". La Patilla. 1 January 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
126. Quintero, Karina (18 December 2014). "Denuncian aumento de homicidios en Zulia durante 2014". Globovision. Archived from the original on 5 January 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
127. Nederr, Sofia (25 October 2014). "Presión de colectivos incidió en salida de Rodríguez Torres". El Nacional. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
128. "Relanzado Plan Patria Segura este sábado en todo el territorio nacional (+Fotos)". Venezolana de Television. 1 November 2014. Archived from the original on 16 December 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
129. "Venezuela's Maduro launches civilian disarmament plan". BBC News. 22 September 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
130. "Caracas: Cabo Vadillo Temporada 1; Programa 2". Mitele. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
131. "Corruption by Country / Territory: Venezuela". Transparency International. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
132. "Venezuela". World Justice Project. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
133. "World Report | 2014" (PDF). Report. Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
134. "La situación de las cárceles venezolanas es una tragedia, dice la ONU". La Patilla. 29 November 2014. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
135. Gupta, Girish (18 May 2012). "Violence eases at overcrowded Venezuelan jail". Reuters. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
136. "OVP: Venezuela mintió en Examen Periódico Universal de Derechos Humanos". La Patilla. 4 November 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
137. World Prison Brief (n/d). United States of America. Retrieved from http://prisonstudies.org/countr%5B%5D y/united-states-america
138. "¿De verdad, Iris Varela? Ministra asegura que el sistema penitenciario venezolano es el mejor del mundo". La Patilla (in Spanish). 15 July 2018. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
139. "23 Inmates Killed in Venezuelan Prison Uprising, Says Rights Group". Time. Associated Press. 24 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
140. "Venezuela prison riot leaves more than 40 dead". BBC News. 2 May 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
141. Gupta, Girish (14 May 2012). "In Venezuela's prisons, inmates are the wardens". Global Post. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
142. Vitola, Giovana. "Venezuela – Party Prison (Video)". Journeyman Pictures. Journeyman Pictures. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
143. Vitola, Giovana. "Venezuela - Party Prison (Text)". Journeyman Pictures. Journeyman Pictures. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
144. Jay, Paul (19 April 2014). "The Modern History of Venezuela, Why Still So Much Crime? – Edgardo Lander on Reality Asserts Itself (7/9)". The Real News. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
145. "IACHR Reiterates Need to Prevent Acts of Violence in Venezuelan Prison". Organization of American States. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
146. "Riña colectiva de Uribana cobra dos vidas y deja 128 heridos". El Impulso. 29 February 2012. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
147. "Coliseo en Uribana sigue y llega a 128 heridos". Ultimas Noticica. 29 February 2012. Archived from the original on 21 April 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
148. Holman, John (9 July 2018). "Venezuela's deadly prison crisis". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
149. Aitken, Peter (2 May 2020). "Venezuela prison riot kills at least 40, including warden". Fox News. Retrieved 3 May 2020.