US embassy cable - 04CARACAS2027

C O N F I D E N T I A L  CARACAS 002027 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
NSC FOR CBARTON 
HQ USSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD 
UNSID DCHA/OTI FOR RPORTER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/25/2014 
TAGS: PHUM, PGOV, VE 
SUBJECT: NATIONAL GUARD SOLDIERS HELD IN PRISON KILLINGS 
 
 
Classified By: A/POLITICAL COUNSELOR MARK WELLS FOR REASONS 1.4 (d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (U) The Bolivar state appeals court June 7 ordered four 
National Guardsmen be detained pending trial for murder. The 
four are suspected of executing seven prisoners and wounding 
200 in the Vista Hermosa prison November 10, 2003. A lower 
court had set the four free March 9, 2004. The case is being 
pursued by prosecutors and the prison rights group 
Observatorio Venezuelano de Prisiones. End Summary. 
 
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Vista Hermosa Massacre 
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2.  (C) The Bolivar state appeals court June 7 ordered four 
National Guardsmen be detained pending trial for murder. The 
four are suspected of executing seven prisoners, and wounding 
200 in the Vista Hermosa prison, located in Bolivar state, 
November 10, 2003. The appeals court decision overturns the 
ruling of the local judge, who had freed the four men after 
rejecting the eye witness testimony of 20 inmates. The judge 
argued that the testimony of the prisoners was inherently 
unreliable. Humberto Prado of the prison rights group 
Observatorio Venezuelano de Prisiones (OVP), told PolOff June 
16 that the local judge's decision was, "A license for (the 
National Guard - GN) to kill in the prisons." OVP is pursuing 
the case together with the prosecutor's office. 
 
3.  (C) Prado said the origin of the massacre was a prison 
uprising in August 2003, in which prisoners took some of 
their family members hostage, demanding improved prison 
conditions. Prado stated that there is prisoner testimony 
that GN Cap. William Jose Campos, in charge of the guard 
detachment, pointed a gun at the head of one of the leaders 
of the uprising, and threatened to kill him when the uprising 
was over. Following this the prosecutors' office requested 
that the GN remove Campos from prison duty, which it did. 
 
4.  (C) On November 10, 2003, however, Campos reappeared at 
the prison and had the prisoners line up outside to be 
searched. According to Prado, all the prisoners were then 
brutally beaten (PolOff saw pictures) by the four National 
Guardsmen now being charged together with three prison guards 
employed by the Ministry of Interior and Justice (MIJ) (Note: 
The MIJ is responsible for interior security in prisons, 
while the GN is responsible for perimeter security only.) The 
names of seven men were then called out. They included five 
leaders of the August uprising, and two prisoners who had 
committed crimes against members of the GN (murder and 
robbery respectively). The seven men were then shot in the 
head. Prado states that forensic evidence shows all seven 
wounds have a descending trajectory, indicating execution. 
There are also 20 testimonies of witnesses which corroborate 
this version. Alonso Medina Roa, the defense lawyer for the 
National Guardsmen, told PolOff June 14 that while some of 
the prisoners may have been killed by the National Guard, 
some were killed by the prison guards working for the MIJ, 
and some by the prisoners themselves. 
 
5.  (U) GN Gen. Alberto Betancourt Nieves, commander of GN 
forces in the region, rejected the appeals court's decision 
to detain the four National Guardsmen June 8, and questioned 
the professionalism of the judges and prosecutors involved in 
the case. He told reporters that, "For any National Guardsman 
service in prisons is the most detestable thing in his 
professional career, and so we are not going to act violently 
against something that is unworthy." He further stated, "We 
are not going to make a big deal about murderers, drug 
dealers, thieves, and the victimizers of the community, whom 
no one wants, we are not going to dirty ourselves with 
something that is not worth it, and that represents such 
insignificant beings." 
 
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Comment 
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6.  (C) The attitude of Gen. Betancourt Nieves is shared by 
many in the criminal justice system. GN and MIJ guards do, 
however, "dirty themselves" inside prison walls, frequently 
trafficking guns, drugs and other contraband. The shocking 
barbarity of this case is perhaps outdone by the impunity 
that had up to now been shown to the National Guardsmen. The 
prosecutors and judges in this case, together with OVP, are 
trying to force the penal system to come to terms with the 
brutal nature of the prisons, and to stand up for the rule of 
law. Given the relatively non-political nature of the case, 
it will be an interesting test of the willingness of the GOV 
to allow judges and prosecutors to act independently against 
violations of human rights, and to protect and respect the 
work of NGOs. 
SHAPIRO 
 
 
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      2004CARACA02027 - CONFIDENTIAL