U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) led a bipartisan group of U.S. House members in requesting a federal investigation into the death of Fernando Alban, a councilman for the Venezuelan centrist political party, Primero Justicia, or First Justice.
Alban, among many who have publicly denounced the socialist regime of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, died on Oct. 8 under suspicious circumstances while in the custody of the country’s intelligence service, according to numerous press reports. Maduro’s government has widely been characterized as a criminal dictatorship.
“We encourage the State Department to call for an independent investigation of the incident,” Rep. Curbelo and his colleagues wrote in an Oct. 15 letter sent to President Donald Trump. “As information is received regarding the parties responsible and the events that led up to Mr. Alban’s death, we ask to obtain the details of his detention and death as well as the steps the Administration plans to take to hold the regime accountable.”
Venezuela’s Interior Minister Nestor Reverol tweeted on Oct. 8 that Alban had leapt to his death from a 10th-floor window at SEBIN headquarters, the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service, where he was being held for alleged participation in an international plot to kill Maduro.
However, that account is contrary to one made the same day by the country’s Chief Prosecutor Tarek Saab, who said in televised interviews that Alban had asked to use a bathroom and jumped to his death from there.
The Trump administration last week publicly blamed Maduro’s regime for Alban’s death and vowed to increase pressure on Maduro’s government “until democracy is restored” to the country, according to an Oct. 10 White House statement.
The United Nations also plans to investigate Alban’s death, as well as human rights violations in the country, said Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, during an Oct. 9 press briefing in Geneva.
“There are so many different reports, and quite a lot of speculation on exactly what happened,” Shamdasani said. “On whether Mr. Alban committed suicide, whether he was thrown, whether he was ill-treated, which is why we need an independent, transparent investigation to clarify the circumstances of his death.”
Alban was being detained at the SEBIN headquarters after his arrest on Oct. 5 at a Venezuelan international airport following a trip to New York, where he visited his family and tried to garner global support against Maduro’s regime.
Alban previously joined other foreign countries in condemning Maduro’s government, which considers such diplomatic actions a crime of treason. Rep. Curbelo has been a consistent advocate of strong U.S. action against the Maduro regime since the Venezuelan president took office in 2013.
“It is our belief that the United States must stand in solidarity with the people of Venezuela and prevent Maduro and his thuggish regime from continuing to repress and abuse the human rights of the Venezuelan people,” wrote Curbelo, who was joined in signing the letter by U.S. Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), and Albio Sires (D-NJ).
“While it appears little is known about the details surrounding the incident, it has been met with swift condemnation and international concern that the Maduro regime was responsible,” they wrote.
In addition to asking President Trump to demand a thorough independent investigation into Alban’s death, the members want to see the U.S. State Department investigate the incident and provide them with “the details of his detention and death,” as well as any necessary steps the administration plans to take to hold the regime accountable.
The lawmakers requested that sanctions be levied against those found to be responsible, according to their letter.
The House members also noted that as Maduro’s regime struggles to keep control of Venezuela, “arbitrary arrests of and excessive force against the opposition have become even more commonplace and severe.”
For instance, they said that more than 100 anti-Maduro Venezuelans, jailed as political prisoners, currently lack access to any legal representation or options.
“The actions of this regime are nothing short of authoritarian and require intense pressure and investigation,” the lawmakers wrote.