ICE detains Venezuelan journalist and restaurateur in US
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detained Venezuelan journalist Wilmer Solano on July 26 at Haulover Beach near Miami Beach while he was working. Solano, who has been seeking asylum, entered the United States legally in 2015, holds a valid Florida work permit and driver’s licence, and has no criminal record in either Venezuela or the United States. He previously worked for Globovisión (2002‑2008) and founded the news agency Zorro Comunicaciones.
A separate ICE action on July 16 held Venezuelan restaurateur Jorge Luis Vilchez López in federal custody at the Otero County Detention Center in New Mexico. Vilchez, owner of the Caracas Latin Food restaurant, arrived in the United States legally in 2019 on a visa and later applied for political asylum. He has no violent‑crime history. His restaurant became a hub for humanitarian aid after recent earthquakes in Venezuela, collecting food, clothing and medicine from donors of several nationalities.
Entities: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) · Jorge Luis Vilchez Lopez · Miami Beach, Florida, USA · Otero County Detention Center, New Mexico, USA · Wilmer Solano
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [● 2 SOURCES] ICE detained journalist Wilmer Solano on July 26, 2024 at Haulover Beach in Miami Beach.
- [● 2 SOURCES] Solano entered the United States legally in 2015, holds a valid work permit and Florida driver’s licence, and has no criminal record in either Venezuela or the United States.
- [● 2 SOURCES] Wilmer Solano is a Venezuelan journalist with over twenty years of experience, formerly employed by Globovisión and founder of Zorro Comunicaciones.
- [○ 1 SOURCE] ICE detained restaurateur Jorge Luis Vilchez Lopez on July 16, 2024 and is holding him at the Otero County Detention Center in New Mexico.
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Vilchez entered the United States legally in 2019 with a visa, later applied for political asylum, and has no violent‑crime history.
- [○ 1 SOURCE] Vilchez’s restaurant, Caracas Latin Food, served as a humanitarian aid hub for Venezuelan earthquake victims, receiving donations from Venezuelans, Mexicans, Colombians and other nationals.