Karaka
CNN
–
A Venezuelan infant who was held in US government detention after his parents were deported, was returned to Venezuela.
Maikelys Antonella Espinoza Bernal arrived at Simón Bolívar International Airport on Wednesday on a repatriation flight from the US.
Venezuelan first lady Cilia Flores hugged her two-year-old in her arms as the civil servants announced they had returned to reporters gathered at the airport.
“We are having a huge victory today,” Home Minister Diosdado Cabello said.
Venezuela had accused U.S. officials of luring her up, demanding that the US return the girl.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) previously denied the allegations, claiming that the family was separated in an attempt to protect Maykelis from their parents.
Maikelys’ mother rejected the claim.
In March, the US deported Espinoza Escarona to an infamous prison in El Salvador, according to the Venezuelan government. His mother, Yorelyz Vernal, was deported on a flight to Venezuela without his daughter.
On Wednesday, the girl reunited with her mother and grandmother at the Presidential Palace in Caracas. State television showed Bernal crying tears of joy as she held her daughter tightly in her arms.
President Nicolas Maduro said Venezuelan officials coordinated with US lawyers and rights groups to ensure the girl’s return.
“I would like to thank Ambassador Richard Grenell, President Donald Trump, for his efforts and with Ambassador Richard Grenell, President Donald Trump,” he said.
“There are differences, there are differences, but God’s blessings can move forward.”
CNN has contacted the DHS and the US State Department’s Venezuelan Issues Force for more information.
The infant and her parents entered the United States in May 2024 to seek asylum, according to court documents filed by legal advocacy groups.
Upon arrival, the couple was placed in immigrant detention while their daughter was under the control of the Refugee Resettlement Office (ORR), the father said in an oath.
In July he received an exile order under the Biden administration. Between October and March, the couple visited their daughter in person each week, Espinoza said.
On March 29, Espinoza was sent to a naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, according to court documents filed by his lawyers.
They said he flew to the infamous Cecot Mega-Prison in El Salvador the next day. The United States uses it to detain hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants.
The mother of the infant was deported shortly after her father was sent to El Salvador. Venezuela said she was forced to return to her country while flying without a two-year-old child.
The girl was placed under ORR’s custody and said DHS “will not allow this child to continue to be abused and exposed to criminal acts that put her safety at risk.”
Bernal previously said he suspected that US authorities tied her to Tren de Aragua for her tattoo.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
