Man’s homecoming celebrated after wrongful imprisonment in Venezuela
By Kate Amara
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WASHINGTON, D.C. (WBAL) — A high-profile celebration on Tuesday welcomed home a Baltimore man who was wrongfully detained in Venezuela.
Erick Oribio, 66, spoke out publicly for the first time. Having lived in Baltimore for more than 30 years, Oribio calls the city his home.
“(I’m) extremely, extremely grateful,” Oribio said.
Oribio is the founder of the influential Spanish-language news outlet, Latin Opinion Baltimore, and is a dual citizen of the U.S. and Venezuela. Officials said Oribio and his brother were wrongfully detained in early January as they visited Venezuela.
U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, worked with the family and colleagues across the aisle to press the Trump administration to secure the men’s release.
“His only offense was being an American citizen in Venezuela, where he was detained by the Maduro regime and imprisoned,” Van Hollen said.
The brothers and six other Americans were released and returned to the U.S. late last month as part of a massive three-country prisoner swap.
“We’re really glad to have him back home. It was a very determined effort, but because of concern of jeopardizing those who were being detained — including Erick — a lot of the activity took place quietly behind the scenes,” Van Hollen said.
Oribio posted a brief statement and photo from the plane on Aug. 3. Surrounded on Tuesday by his family at Van Hollen’s office on Capitol Hill, he said: “It is like a miracle to be here. (There are) no words to describe.”
Oribio said the first thing he did upon returning to Baltimore was, “Eat. Eat rice pudding in Greektown,” as well as visit a Venezuelan restaurant in Fells Point.
Oribio said he couldn’t discuss details or specifics about his time in Venezuela, or exactly what has happened to him over the past seven months. According to the senator’s office, there are still family members who live in Venezuela.
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