Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro meets then Nueva Esparta Governor Alfredo Díaz at Miraflores Palace. Photo: Venezuelan Presidential Press/file photo.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—The former governor of Nueva Esparta state, Alfredo Díaz, died Saturday after showing “symptoms consistent with a myocardial stroke,” according to a statement from the Venezuelan Ministry for Penitentiary Services.
The incident occurred Saturday morning at the Center for Processed Persons, Convicts and Female Annex of the Metropolitan Area of Caracas, a maximum security facility in El Helicoide, Caracas. The ministry said he was assisted by fellow inmates before the on-duty medical team responded.
“Due to his health condition, he was transferred to the University Clinical Hospital where he was admitted and, while trying to stabilize him, he unfortunately passed away minutes later,” the statement read.
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Díaz, a leader of the Democratic Action party (AD), governed Nueva Esparta from 2017 to 2021. He was arrested in Ospino, Portuguesa state, on November 24, 2024, while allegedly trying to flee the country. He faced charges of incitement to hatred and terrorism.
“He was being prosecuted, with full guarantees of his rights, in accordance with the legal system and respect for human rights and his legal defense. This was evidenced by videos and corresponding records,” the ministry’s statement added.
Díaz was among more than 2,000 Venezuelans detained following 48 hours of violent protest organized by far-right forces after the victory of President Nicolás Maduro in the June 28, 2024, presidential election. The majority of those detained during the violent protests have already been released.
Prior allegations of violence and vandalism
In 2018, a year after being sworn in as governor, Díaz was denounced before the Attorney General’s Office for alleged crimes of gender violence and vandalism. Reports stated that he violently entered the Armando Mata Hospital in Punta de Piedras to dismiss its then-director, María Elena Romero.
That same year, the state’s protector, Dante Rivas, wrote: “As a protector of Nueva Esparta, of women, of the women of Nueva Esparta, I cannot allow this man to continue attacking our people. A similar situation occurred at the Conejeros stadium, where this incompetent man even changed the locks and prevented legitimate authorities from entering. This confirms that this man only knows how to operate through violence; he is incapable of resolving problems through dialogue, peacefully.”
Authorities had previously suggested Díaz “could provide important information about the insurrectionary acts planned by the extreme far-right against the country, for the days prior to the inauguration of President Nicolás Maduro,” in January 2025.
NGO claims countered by regional data
Non-governmental organizations with links to the US government, such as PROVEA and Foro Penal, have claimed his death is part of a pattern of jailed politicians dying in custody. However, a comparison of data, taking the figures presented by these NGOs as valid against regional statistics, shows Venezuela below the regional average for such incidents.
These same NGOs have not taken strong stands against the massive deportation of Venezuelans by the US government, the US Southern Command’s killing spree in the region, the controversial transfer of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s CECOT prison, or the assassinations promoted by far-right politicians in Venezuela during the June 2024 violent protests.
The US Department of State, via its Western Hemisphere Bureau, almost immediately issued an interventionist statement on Sunday morning, highlighting the deep connection between the involved parties and ongoing US regime-change attempts.
“The death of Venezuelan political prisoner Alfredo Díaz, who was arbitrarily detained in the Maduro’s torture center of El Helicoide, is yet another reminder of the vile nature of the criminal Maduro regime,” wrote the US empire’s foreign office.
A pattern of far-right violence
Many international figures unfamiliar with the fascist nature of the Venezuelan far-right opposition analyze the country’s political tension through the lens of regular political opposition. In reality, the Venezuelan case shows a clear, differentiated pattern of violence, crime, terrorism and coup plots, exacerbated by constant support from the US government and its intelligence agencies.
On Saturday night, the coffin containing the remains of the opposition leader arrived on Margarita Island, where his funeral will be held, according to local media.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/JB
