Caracas residents report fear and phone searches after U.S. raid on Maduro

Time reports that residents of Caracas say they have been living in fear since U.S. forces struck the capital in the early hours of Jan. 3 during a raid to capture Nicolás Maduro.

People interviewed described panic during the blasts—“The noise is something I’ll never forget,” one woman said—and widespread caution afterward: many have deleted photos, messages and apps and are avoiding checkpoints out of fear that armed government supporters known as colectivos will search phones. The State Department sent an alert advising U.S. citizens in Venezuela to leave, warning of reports that colectivos were stopping cars and searching for evidence of U.S. ties or support. Some interviewed residents said they had heard rumors of a device used to extract data; one woman, Camila, said she bought a new phone for $60 with a clean memory and is leaving her usual phone at home. Another interviewee, who asked to be identified only as C., said, “You can be in jail just because you are thinking differently from the government.”

The brief celebrations that followed news of Maduro’s removal faded as it became clear the regime that supported him remains in power. Many Venezuelans are slowly emerging to buy groceries and return to work but are leaving phones at home and say they remain uncertain and afraid that conditions will not change.

Key Topics

World, Nicolás Maduro, Caracas, Colectivos, El Helicoide, State Department