Inside look at El Salvador’s mega-prison holding Venezuelan deportees with alleged gang ties
By Miami Herald Newsroom
The Trump administration’s decision to deport over 200 alleged Tren de Aragua members to El Salvador has ignited controversy, with questions arising over whether the president defied a federal judge’s order.
The administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act, a rarely used wartime law, to justify the deportations. However, no public evidence has been provided linking the deported Venezuelans to criminal activity.
Human rights advocates warn that the deportees legal rights were violated as they were transferred to the CECOT, a mega-prison established by El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele for his crackdown on gangs in the country. The facility, according to the Associated Press, can hold up to 40,000 inmates; up to 70 people are housed in a single cell.
See photos of the mega-prison where deportees are now being held.
An aerial view of the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, as provided by Presidencia El Salvador on March 15, 2023. Handout Presidencia El Salvador
This photo, released by the Presidencia El Salvador, shows a second group of 2,000 detainees being transferred overnight to the Terrorist Confinement Centre (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 15, 2023. Handout Presidencia El Salvador
This photo, released by the Presidencia El Salvador, shows a second group of 2,000 detainees being transferred overnight to the Terrorist Confinement Centre (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 15, 2023. Presidencia El Salvador
This photo, released by the Presidencia El Salvador, shows a second group of 2,000 detainees being transferred overnight to the Terrorist Confinement Centre (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 15, 2023. Presidencia El Salvador
Inmates stand inside their cell at the high-security Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on Dec. 10, 2024. Juan Carlos dpa/Sipa USA
This photo, released by the Presidencia El Salvador, shows a second group of 2,000 detainees being transferred overnight to the Terrorist Confinement Centre (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 15, 2023. Presidencia El Salvador
In this handout photo released by the Salvadoran presidency, inmates are seen inside a cell at the Terrorist Confinement Centre (CECOT), a mega-prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on June 11, 2024. Getty Images/Newsweek
This photo, released by the Presidencia El Salvador, shows a second group of 2,000 detainees being transferred overnight to the Terrorist Confinement Centre (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 15, 2023. Handout Presidencia El Salvador
Inmates are visible in their cells at CECOT in Tecoluca, San Vicente, El Salvador, on February 6, 2024. Alex Peña Getty Images
In this handout photo from the Salvadoran presidency, inmates wait as 2,000 detainees are transferred to the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on June 11, 2024. Handout Presidencia El Salvador via Gett
This story was originally published March 16, 2025 at 5:11 PM.
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