Caracas, Sep 5 (EFE).- The national coordinator of the Venezuelan political party Convergencia, Biagio Pilieri was charged with five crimesincluding “terrorism,” his wife, Maria Livia Vasile, denounced on Thursday, explaining that he was presented at a hearing without the presence of his “trusted lawyers.”
“My husband was brought before the court last Friday, August 30, without the presence of his trusted lawyers, with the assistance of a public defender. He was charged with five crimes: conspiracy, criminal association, incitement to hatred, terrorism and treason,” Vasile said on the social network X.
He also said that Pilieri has been in “unjust” detention for a week and that, so far, he has not been able to communicate with his family and defense team.
On August 31, Convergencia demanded the release of the former deputy, saying that he is an “upright person, a man committed to democracy, freedom and human rights.”
“He is not with us today, but we demand that he be released because wanting the popular will of Venezuelans to be respected is not a crime,” the party added in a post on X.
Pilieri was arrested on August 28 after participating in a protest called by the main opposition coalition, the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), in rejection of the Supreme Court’s ruling that validated the controversial reelection of Nicolás Maduro in the presidential election, according to opposition members who denounced it on the social network.
The anti-Chavez movement said the former deputy was captured after two vehicles and two motorcycles allegedly chased him through Caracas.
A day after his arrest, the Convergencia party reported that officials from the Bolivarian Intelligence Service (Sebin) raided Pilieri’s residence in the state of Yaracuy (west), without offering further details of the police operation.
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2024-09-05 17:26:16
