An opposition Voluntad Popular (VP) party activist in Venezuela was murdered this week after being detained by security forces in the western state of Apure.
Edwin Santos was found Friday morning on a bridge that had been the centre of attention after he went missing Wednesday afternoon while travelling to the rural district of El Pinal. The VP party said he “was murdered after being abducted by members of the state security forces” on Wednesday, placing the blame on President Nicolás Maduro.
“Witnesses in the region confirmed that he was intercepted by state security agents,” the party said in a statement, adding that it was confirmed on Thursday that he was in the custody of Venezuela’s military counterintelligence headquarters in Guasdualito, a town near the Colombian border.
“During the past few months he had fought for his community, denouncing the collapse of the bridge that links Apure with [the neighbouring state of] Tachira,” the VP said, adding, “It was on that bridge that he was found dead this morning.”
Venezuelan opposition activists have come under pressure since July elections in which Maduro claimed victory for a third term, despite the opposition publishing detailed polls showing Edmundo González Urrutia winning by a wide margin. Urrutia left for Spain after a warrant for his arrest was issued on charges of terrorism, conspiracy and other offences.
