Richard Duarte Rodriguez is a 24-year-old Venezuelan immigrant from a remote area nine hours by road from Caracas, the capital. He is the father of two young children who live in Peru. A hardworking, honest, good young man, according to his uncle, Luis Duarte, he crossed the US border in 2023, was held in a detention center, and was released with an ankle monitor. He then moved to Maimi, Florida where he lived with his aunt and her children and was granted a work permit in the United States.

Neiyerver Adrián Leon Rengel (Adrian), 27   was born in 1998 — the same year Hugo Chávez rose to power, marking the beginning of Venezuela’s unraveling. His generation came of age amid blackouts, food shortages and collapsing institutions. He graduated from high school in Venezuela with a focus on science, according to his brother, Nedizon Alejandro Leon Rengel (Alejandro).  Adrien later took a barber course amid the country’s dismal economy.  

Jhon Chacín Gomez, 35, is a very well-known professional tattoo artist in Barranquilla, Venezuela where he lived for many years with his wife and three children, according to his mother-in-law.

Luis Alfredo Núñez Falcón, 38, was born in Portuguesa state of Venezuela, but lived in Puerto Cabello (Carabobo state, Venezuela) since he was 17 where he worked in construction and as a fisherman. In August 2023, he decided to migrate to the U.S. at the urging of a friend who had already migrated.

Mikael Alejandro Fernandez Subero is a tattoo artist and barber. He left Nueva Esparta state of Venezuela for the United States on September 11, 2023, traveling through the Darien jungle in Panama. He eventually arrived in Mexico, where he remained for a month awaiting his immigration appointment, which would grant him legal approval to enter the United States. This appointment was scheduled for December 9, 2023.

Andres Guillermo Morales Rolon, 26, is a Colombian-Venezuelan dual citizen. Andres loves to cook, only rests one day a week, and doesn’t like many sports. He is a family man who loves to go out with his wife and daughters to parks. He migrated to the US in 2022.

When Alí David Navas Vizcaya left for California on February 13, 2024, to attend his CBP-One appointment for permission to enter the United States, he thought that day would change his life, and it did, but not in the way he expected. He has not been free since.

Obed Eduardo Navas Díaz, 24 years old, is from Paraguaná, Venezuela where he grew up in in a close family that has suffered greatly from the financial collapse of the country. He is married and the father of a three-month old baby. He worked as a skilled barber while still pursuing his aspirations of making a name for himself in the music world as a reggaeton/hip hop singer.

Julio Rafael Fernández Sánchez (34 ), originally from the town of San Mateo in the state of Aragua (in the north-central region of Venezuela), achieved his dream of reaching the United States with his wife, Carolina Carillo and her 17-year old son in July 2024. Julio has no biological children but he and Carolina have been together for 14 years and he raised her three children as his own.

Leonel Javier Echavez Paz is a 19-year-old Venezuelan who was born and raised in La Villa, Zulia, Venezuela. Faced with the country’s complicated economic situation and the need to help his older brother, who is disabled after losing a leg, Leonel made the decision to leave Venezuela in early 2023. The family, composed of six members, was facing serious economic difficulties that prevented them from providing the necessary support.

Jonathan Miguel Ramírez, is a 30-year-old Venezuelan from Carabobo state where he was raised by his aunt, Yenni Rincón because his mother was disabled.

Keiber Zabaleta Morillo is a native of Barrio Guanipa Matos, Venancio Pulgar parish, Maracaibo, Venezuela and a skilled carpenter.

Before moving to the US, Brayan Palencia Benavides lived a life “like any other person,” says his older brother, Erly. They both worked in the construction and remodeling business. “We did deliveries and that’s how we were able to buy our motorcycles,” he says.

Andy Javier Perozo Palencia (30) hails from Maracaibo, a city in western Venezuela that once was one of the nation’s wealthiest, thanks to its abundant oil reserves. But as Andy came of age, his nation began to collapse. Hyperinflation made their salaries worthless. Venezuela’s oil industry tanked. The city began experiencing regular blackouts.

David Gerardo Cabrera Rico, a 35-year-old father of four from Maracaibo, Venezuela. According to his mother, Aura Rosa Rico, David lived and worked legally in Chile for nine years, and "never had a criminal record."

Roger Eduardo Molina**-**Acevedo and his girlfriend, Daniela Núñez, arrived at a Houston airport less than two weeks before Trump was inaugurated.

María Quevedo and her son, Eddie Adolfo Hurtado Quevedo (24) left their troubled homeland of Venezuela when Eddie was 17. They lived in Peru for more than 5 years where they both worked and saved.

On January 15, five days before Donald Trump took office, 32-year-old Ricardo Prada Vásquez — a food delivery driver in Detroit, Michigan, who had entered the United States legally in November 2024 through the CBP One app — was detained while delivering a McDonald’s order.

Wild, who is 28 years old, migrated to Santa Marta, Colombia, in 2017 due to the critical food situation in Venezuela. He wanted to help his mother in the midst of this crisis. Subsequently, he moved to Bogota, where he worked in recycling with his wife. Faced with the need to improve their situation, they decided to embark on a journey to the United States, taking his wife’s youngest daughter with them. Wild is a tattoo artist.

Marcos is 34 years old and will turn 35 on April 30. In 2016, he left Venezuela for Colombia due to the economic crisis in the country, where there was no food or medicine. He stayed in Colombia for six months and then moved to Ecuador, where he lived with his mother for five years. In Ecuador, he met his wife and they had a son who is now three years old. Marcos worked as a bricklayer and then selling clothes. In Venezuela, he worked as a graduate in administration and did internships at the company MISTRAL.

Euder, 41, is originally from Caracas, Venezuela. His partner Eira describes him as a hard worker who accepts any job that comes his way. Eira, his partner of 17 years, has two children: a 21-year-old and a 30-year-old. In 2020, Eira emigrated to Ecuador with their oldest son. A year later, in 2021, Euder and his youngest son joined them in the province of Ambato, near Quito.

Kenlyn, 34, is the father of two children: a 13-year-old son and a six-year-old daughter, who is Peruvian-Venezuelan. In 2018, he left Venezuela and moved to Peru with his wife and eldest son due to the economic crisis and food shortages. They had a family business in Anaco, Venezuela, an ice cream shop called JM Anderson, but the situation worsened, forcing them to leave the country. In Peru, they lived for five years, where Kenlyn worked as a bricklayer and mechanic. During that time, his daughter was born, and Kenlyn got a tattoo of her name and two crosses, one on each shoulder.

Edicson, 28, is originally from El Pinal, in the state of Táchira, Venezuela. He was in the military in his country, but decided to emigrate in search of a better life.

Lainerke is a 30 year old man who left Venezuela on December 18, 2023, embarking on a perilous journey through the Darien. Upon arriving in Mexico, he began working while waiting for his CBP1 processing appointment, which was assigned for March 2024. At the time, he was accompanied by a group of friends and his wife, who had not been scheduled for appointments. Lainerke decided to voluntarily turn himself in with them so that they could all be together. However, the women were released, but Lainerke was denied the same fate and was deported back to Mexico.

Ángel de Jesús González Fuenmayor (19) left the Zulia state of Venezuela for the USA on April 20,2024 after finishing school. He arrived in Mexico in the middle of May, according to his grandmother, Jackelin Orozco, who lives in Venezuela.

Deibin Iradan Gualtero Quiroz, 39, is originally from the state of Yaracuy, Venezuela. He left home with the intention of improving the lives of his five children. According to his mother, he worked as a furniture maker, a trade he also practiced in Colombia during his journey to the United States.

Maiker Espinoza Escalona, his partner Yorelis Bernal Inciarte and their one-year-old baby, Maikerlys entered the United States in May, 2024 and requested asylum, hoping that after turning themselves in to authorities they would be released and allowed to begin their new life as a family.But that would never happen.

Leonardo Gabriel García Prado, 24, and his girlfriend, Geisber Sudero, 22 were living in New York City and were arrested by ICE on February 15, 2025. She was released when she showed her Temporary Protected Status but Leonardo was not so lucky.

Everything was going well for Angelo Escalona Sevilla, age 18, in the US. He entered legally, had a social security work permit and a pending asylum application with a court date coming up on March 23, according to his mother, Sharol Arteaga.

Aldrin Jose Delgado Piña (26) arrived in the US in 2023 in search of a better future for himself and his family according to his parents, Aldrín Delgado senior and Gisela Piña.

Daniel Lozano Camargo, (20) was raised in Venezuela by his grandparents, because his father died in an accident when he was very young. When he was only 17, he decided to try to emigrate to the US on foot through the dangerous Darien Gap.

Franco José Caraballo Tiapa, 26, and his wife, Johanny (22) fled their hometown of Yaracuy, Venezuela, after rallying in support of political leaders opposed to President Nicolás Maduro. They were roughed up by presidential loyalists and fled Venezuela.

After the murder of a relative, Jefferson Laya-Freites, 33, and his cousin, Robert Elista Jimenez’s, and their two families fled Venezuela. They were worried about violence, oppression and the economy, and hoping to find somewhere they could give their children a better future. They felt the dangerous trek north to the United States through jungles and deserts would be worth it.

Gustavo Adolfo Aguilera Agüero, 27, is from the Venezuelan mountains, and had been living in Dallas since December 2023 with his wife. The couple entered the United States legally, using the CPB app to schedule appointments with southwest border authorities. Both Gustavo and his wife, Susej, were given work permits and he worked installing water pipes on rooftops while she took care of children.

Jesús Alberto Ríos Andrade is married to a U.S. citizen. When he was detained on February 1 by immigration authorities, he had already started multiple U.S. immigration processes: permanent residency, a work permit, and even Temporary Protected Status.“

This is Juan Jose Ramos. He was arrested while with his family in a car in Utah. His cousin who was driving said agents saw Juan's tattoo during a traffic stop, they assumed he was “a member of the Tren de Aragua solely for having a tattoo.”

Ivonne Rivas de Benevides tried to hold back her tears in a telephone conversation with reporters as she told them that her 28-year-old son, Yornel Santiago Benevides Rivas, left for the USA a year and a half ago seeking to help his family, "to fix up the little house."

Andry Omar Blanco-Bonilla, age 40, entered the US legally on the CPB-One app in December, 2023, receiving a work permit while his asylum was pending. He lived in Austin and worked as a painter, sending money back to his family in Venezuela.

This is Arturo Suárez-Trejo, 33. He also goes by SuarezVzla, as a musical artist. He had left his native Venezuela in 2018 and had settled in Chile. There he made music, friends and fans, but he wanted to improve his musical skills and find more opportunities and connections in USA. So, on September 2, 2024, around 1 p.m., he entered the United States after presenting himself at the San Ysidro border crossing in California. He entered through the CBP One program, and had the protection of a parole program. A hearing on his asylum case was scheduled for April 2 of this year.

This is Alirio Belloso Fuenmayor squished between his wife, Noemi and daughter, Alicia. In September 2023, he came to the U.S. to earn enough money to fix the roof on the family house, buy beds and food, and buy school supplies for his daughter.

Here's 24-year-old Frengel Reyes Mota, a Venezuelan immigrant with no criminal record in the States or in Venezuela.

Neri Alvarado Borges (24) has a little brother, Neryelson. They're very close. Nerylson is autistic and Neri got a tattoo of the autism ribbon to celebrate their bond.

Henryy Albornoz-Quintero (29) and his partner, Nays (22) came to the US legally with CPB One app in November 2024. Nays found work in a kitchen and Henryy worked as a mechanic. Then in January 2025, at a routine ICE check-in, Henryy was taken into custody. By that time, Nays was 7 months pregnant and frantic. She hired a lawyer who started working on his case.

This is Josue Basto Lizcano (27). He told his mom a year and a half ago that he was going to try to go to the US to earn money to help her and the rest of his family. He tried to enter the U.S. legally on September 7, 2024 via the CBP One app. But Josue was detained that day, and was never released, said his sister Yesika Basto.

Rosme Alexander Colina Argüelles is from the community of El Hatillo, Guzmán Guillermo parish, Miranda municipality in Venezuela. He left for the USA, October 31, 2023, hoping to find a more stable future for himself and his family because of the terrible, and worsening, economic conditions in Venezuela.“

Francisco Garcia Casique left Venezuela in 2019, first to Peru, seeking new opportunities as overlapping economic, political and social crises engulfed the country according to his mother, Mirelys Casique Lopez. "He doesn't belong to any criminal gang, either in the US or in Venezuela… he's not a criminal," Ms Casique said. "What he's been is a barber.

Before moving to the U.S. in 2023, Merwil Gutierrez Flores lived with his family a town near Caracas, Venezuela and went to school. His father, Wilmer, worked for two jobs to support his loved ones, which included Merwil’s grandmother, who was battling cancer, and his three children: his son Merwil and his daughter Wisleidy, and his youngest daughter Wiskelly who lived with her mother in Perú.

This is Frizgeralth De Jesus Cornejo Pulgar (25). He left Venezuela to escape gang violence, and came to the USA with his family who all had court appointments after being vetted through the CPB-One app. Despite allowing his other family members being permitted into the US on temporary protected status, Frizgeralth was kept in detention.