Venezuelan inmate dies of HIV and TB complications in overcrowded Zulia prison

Yoandry Medina González, a detainee at the Centro de Formación del Hombre Nuevo “Dr. Francisco Delgado” – formerly known as El Marite – in Zulia state, died after being rushed to the Hospital Universitario de Maracaibo with complications from HIV and tuberculosis. The prison, built for 700 inmates, now holds over 1,000, an occupancy of 143 % and overcrowding exceeding 43 %, conditions the Observatorio Venezolano de Prisiones (OVP) says accelerate the spread of infectious diseases and impede timely medical care.

The OVP highlighted that this is the latest in a series of deaths from disease in Venezuelan prisons, noting roughly 40 inmates have died since April from illnesses or alleged riots, including similar cases in Carabobo. The organization called the situation a “repeated tragedy” and urged the government to provide answers and improve health services for incarcerated persons.