Latest news with #Adrián
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
After a month of searching, man learns from NBC News that DHS sent his brother to El Salvador
It was March 13 when Nedizon Alejandro Leon Rengel called his brother Neiyerver Adrián Leon Rengel to wish him a happy birthday. Alejandro never heard back from him. Federal agents detained Adrián on his way to his job at a Dallas barbershop. For the next five weeks, Alejandro has searched for Adrián, trying to learn where he was: deported to another country? Held in an immigration facility in the United States? He and Adrián's live-in girlfriend called Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Texas, getting shifted from office to office with different responses. Sometimes they were told Adrián was still in detention. Another time they were told that he had been deported back to 'his country of origin,' El Salvador, even though Adrián is Venezuelan. (Alejandro provided NBC News with audio recordings of the calls.) Their mother went to a detention center in Caracas, Venezuela, where deportees are held when they arrive from the United States, Alejandro said, but she was told no one by her son's name was there. They enlisted the help of advocacy groups. Cristosal, a nonprofit organization in El Salvador working with families of presumed deportees to get answers from the U.S. and Salvadoran governments, had no answers. Same with the League of United Latin American Citizens, known as LULAC. Alejandro's 6-year-old niece asked him almost every day: When will her dad call her? 'For 40 days, his family has been waiting to hear his fate,' LULAC CEO Juan Proaño said. Finally, on Tuesday, an answer. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed to NBC News that Adrián had, in fact, been deported — to El Salvador. The news 'saddens me a lot' and 'shattered me,' Alejandro said after he heard about his brother's whereabouts from NBC News. DHS didn't respond when it was asked whether Adrián was sent to CECOT, the mega-prison in El Salvador. But Alejandro fears that's the case, given the many Venezuelans who were sent to CECOT from Texas a few days after he was detained. 'There, [El Salvador President Nayib] Bukele says demons enter their hell," Alejandro said about the prison, speaking on the phone from the restaurant where he works. "And my brother is not a criminal. At this moment, I don't feel very good. The news has hit me like a bucket of cold water.' The Rengel family's experience echoes the experiences of others who have encountered the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts — sometimes their family members seemingly disappear after having been taken by immigration authorities. The administration has prioritized deporting men alleged to be members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which it has designated as a foreign terrorist organization under the 1700s-era wartime Alien Enemies Act. 'Neiyerver Adrian Leon Rengel, entered our country illegally in 2023 from Venezuela and is an associate of Tren De Aragua,' DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told NBC News by email. 'Tren de Aragua is vicious gang that rapes, maims, and murders for sport. President Trump and [DHS] Secretary [Kristi] Noem will not allow foreign terrorist enemies to operate in our country and endanger Americans. They will always put the safety of the American people first.' Asked for details and documents supporting DHS' allegations of criminality, McLaughlin responded: 'We aren't going to share intelligence reports and undermine national security every time a gang member denies he is one. That would be insane.' Adrian's family denies he is a member of the gang. 'For me, it's a forced disappearance, because he's not communicating with anyone, they're not permitting him a right to anything, and they're not giving him a right to a defense — from what I understand, here we're all innocent until it's proved contrary,' Alejandro said. 'Then the only offense we have here is to be a migrant and be Venezuelan, and now the government has turned against this nationality,' he said, adding the government believes 'we all belong to Tren de Aragua.' Adrián, 27, came to the United States in 2023 by appointment through the CBP One app. Alejandro provided NBC News a photo of a printout confirming his brother's June 12, 2023, appointment. Adrián had also applied for temporary protected status, according to a Dec. 1, 2024, document from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, a part of DHS that handles immigration benefits. In November, Adrián's car wasn't working, so he got a ride with a co-worker, Alejandro said. Police in Irving, Texas, stopped the co-worker, who had outstanding traffic violations, and detained them both after they found a marijuana trimmer in the co-worker's vehicle, Alejandro said. Police charged Adrián with a Class C misdemeanor of possession of drug paraphernalia, punishable by up to a $500 fine. 'I don't know why that charge was leveled against him, because first, it wasn't his car,' said Alejandro, 32. 'Second, the belongings in the car were not his.' Documents provided by Alejandro show Adrián pleaded guilty/no contest — the document doesn't specify which he pleaded — and was fined $492. Alejandro said his brother was paying the fine in monthly installments. Adrián had a crown tattoo with the initial 'Y,' the first letter of his ex-wife's name, on his hand, Alejandro said. When he was arrested in November, officers told him they were linking him to Tren de Aragua 'because of that tattoo,' Alejandro said. That's why he later covered it with a tiger tattoo, Alejandro said. ICE has pointed to tattoos, including those of a crown, as indicators of membership in Tren de Aragua. Adrián also has a tattoo of his mother's name on one of his biceps. 'We are not criminal people. We are people who studied professions in Venezuela. We had careers; we're not people who are linked with any of that,' said Alejandro, who had jobs in banking and insurance in Venezuela and other Latin American countries but now works at a restaurant. Adrián graduated from high school in Venezuela with a focus on science, Alejandro said, later taking a barber course amid the country's dismal economy. Adrián emigrated to Colombia with his then-wife and daughter and worked there for a several years. When the area became unsafe, he moved his wife and daughter back to Venezuela and then went to Mexico and applied for a CBP One appointment to enter the United States. Adrián came to the United States 'because we all know the political, social and economic situation in Venezuela' and he wanted to make enough money to buy his daughter a house back home, Alejandro said. Before he got confirmation that his brother was in El Salvador, Alejandro said, he would sometimes get on his knees and pray. 'I've had moments where I think 'at any moment he's going to call' and then moments when I'm shattered and I don't know what to do.' 'I never, ever thought I would go through a situation like this,' he said, adding that the only thing he thought would happen when he came to the United States himself as a migrant was that 'they either give you asylum or they deport you. Not a forced disappearance.' This article was originally published on
NBC News
23-04-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
After a month of searching, man learns from NBC News that DHS sent his brother to El Salvador
It was March 13 when Nedizon Alejandro Leon Rengel called his brother Neiyerver Adrián Leon Rengel to wish him a happy birthday. Alejandro never heard back from him. Federal agents detained Adrián on his way to his job at a Dallas barbershop. For the next five weeks, Alejandro has searched for Adrián, trying to learn where he was: deported to another country? Held in an immigration facility in the United States? He and Adrián's live-in girlfriend called Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Texas, getting shifted from office to office with different responses. Sometimes they were told Adrián was still in detention. Another time they were told that he had been deported back to 'his country of origin,' El Salvador, even though Adrián is Venezuelan. (Alejandro provided NBC News with audio recordings of the calls.) Their mother went to a detention center in Caracas, Venezuela, where deportees are held when they arrive from the United States, Alejandro said, but she was told no one by her son's name was there. They enlisted the help of advocacy groups. Cristosal, a nonprofit organization in El Salvador working with families of presumed deportees to get answers from the U.S. and Salvadoran governments, had no answers. Same with the League of United Latin American Citizens, known as LULAC. Alejandro's 6-year-old niece asked him almost every day: When will her dad call her? 'For 40 days, his family has been waiting to hear his fate,' LULAC CEO Juan Proaño said. Finally, on Tuesday, an answer. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed to NBC News that Adrián had, in fact, been deported — to El Salvador. The news 'saddens me a lot' and 'shattered me,' Alejandro said after he heard about his brother's whereabouts from NBC News. DHS didn't respond when it was asked whether Adrián was sent to CECOT, the mega-prison in El Salvador. But Alejandro fears that's the case, given the many Venezuelans who were sent to CECOT from Texas a few days after he was detained. 'There, [El Salvador President Nayib] Bukele says demons enter their hell," Alejandro said about the prison, speaking on the phone from the restaurant where he works. "And my brother is not a criminal. At this moment, I don't feel very good. The news has hit me like a bucket of cold water.' The Rengel family's experience echoes the experiences of others who have encountered the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts — sometimes their family members seemingly disappear after having been taken by immigration authorities. The administration has prioritized deporting men alleged to be members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which it has designated as a foreign terrorist organization under the 1700s-era wartime Alien Enemies Act. 'Neiyerver Adrian Leon Rengel, entered our country illegally in 2023 from Venezuela and is an associate of Tren De Aragua,' DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told NBC News by email. 'Tren de Aragua is vicious gang that rapes, maims, and murders for sport. President Trump and [DHS] Secretary [Kristi] Noem will not allow foreign terrorist enemies to operate in our country and endanger Americans. They will always put the safety of the American people first.' Asked for details and documents supporting DHS' allegations of criminality, McLaughlin responded: 'We aren't going to share intelligence reports and undermine national security every time a gang member denies he is one. That would be insane.' Adrian's family denies he is a member of the gang. 'For me, it's a forced disappearance, because he's not communicating with anyone, they're not permitting him a right to anything, and they're not giving him a right to a defense — from what I understand, here we're all innocent until it's proved contrary,' Alejandro said. 'Then the only offense we have here is to be a migrant and be Venezuelan, and now the government has turned against this nationality,' he said, adding the government believes 'we all belong to Tren de Aragua.' Adrián, 27, came to the United States in 2023 by appointment through the CBP One app. Alejandro provided NBC News a photo of a printout confirming his brother's June 12, 2023, appointment. Adrián had also applied for temporary protected status, according to a Dec. 1, 2024, document from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, a part of DHS that handles immigration benefits. In November, Adrián's car wasn't working, so he got a ride with a co-worker, Alejandro said. Police in Irving, Texas, stopped the co-worker, who had outstanding traffic violations, and detained them both after they found a marijuana trimmer in the co-worker's vehicle, Alejandro said. Police charged Adrián with a Class C misdemeanor of possession of drug paraphernalia, punishable by up to a $500 fine. 'I don't know why that charge was leveled against him, because first, it wasn't his car,' said Alejandro, 32. 'Second, the belongings in the car were not his.' Documents provided by Alejandro show Adrián pleaded guilty/no contest — the document doesn't specify which he pleaded — and was fined $492. Alejandro said his brother was paying the fine in monthly installments. Adrián had a crown tattoo with the initial 'Y,' the first letter of his ex-wife's name, on his hand, Alejandro said. When he was arrested in November, officers told him they were linking him to Tren de Aragua 'because of that tattoo,' Alejandro said. That's why he later covered it with a tiger tattoo, Alejandro said. ICE has pointed to tattoos, including those of a crown, as indicators of membership in Tren de Aragua. Adrián also has a tattoo of his mother's name on one of his biceps. 'We are not criminal people. We are people who studied professions in Venezuela. We had careers; we're not people who are linked with any of that,' said Alejandro, who had jobs in banking and insurance in Venezuela and other Latin American countries but now works at a restaurant. Adrián graduated from high school in Venezuela with a focus on science, Alejandro said, later taking a barber course amid the country's dismal economy. Adrián emigrated to Colombia with his then-wife and daughter and worked there for a several years. When the area became unsafe, he moved his wife and daughter back to Venezuela and then went to Mexico and applied for a CBP One appointment to enter the United States. Adrián came to the United States 'because we all know the political, social and economic situation in Venezuela' and he wanted to make enough money to buy his daughter a house back home, Alejandro said. Before he got confirmation that his brother was in El Salvador, Alejandro said, he would sometimes get on his knees and pray. 'I've had moments where I think 'at any moment he's going to call' and then moments when I'm shattered and I don't know what to do.' 'I never, ever thought I would go through a situation like this,' he said, adding that the only thing he thought would happen when he came to the United States himself as a migrant was that 'they either give you asylum or they deport you. Not a forced disappearance.'
Euronews
17-02-2025
- Euronews
Can a whale really swallow a human whole? The truth behind this viral video from Chile
A humpback whale briefly swallowed a kayaker off Chilean Patagonia before quickly releasing him unharmed. The incident, caught on camera, quickly went viral. Last Saturday, Adrián Simancas was kayaking with his father, Dell, in Bahía El Águila near the San Isidro Lighthouse in the Strait of Magellan when a humpback whale surfaced, engulfing Adrián and his yellow kayak for a few seconds before letting him go. Dell, just metres away, captured the moment on video while encouraging his son to stay calm. 'Stay calm, stay calm,' he can be heard saying after his son was released from the whale's mouth. What happened to the kayaker? 'I thought I was dead,' Adrián told The Associated Press. 'I thought it had eaten me, that it had swallowed me.' He described the 'terror' of those few seconds and explained that his real fear set in only after resurfacing, fearing that the huge animal would hurt his father or that he would perish in the frigid waters. Despite the terrifying experience, Dell remained focused, filming and reassuring his son while grappling with his own worry. 'When I came up and started floating, I was scared that something might happen to my father too, that we wouldn't reach the shore in time, or that I would get hypothermia,' Adrián said. After a few seconds in the water, Adrián managed to reach his father's kayak and was quickly assisted. Despite the scare, both returned to shore uninjured. Located about 3,000 kilometres south of Santiago, Chile's capital, the Strait of Magellan is a major tourist attraction in the Chilean Patagonia, known for adventure activities. Its frigid waters pose a challenge for sailors, swimmers and explorers who attempt to cross it in different ways. Although it's summer in the Southern Hemisphere, temperatures in the region remain cool, with minimums dropping to 4 degrees Celsius and highs rarely exceeding 20 degrees Celsius. Are whale attacks common? Whale attacks on humans are extremely rare in Chilean waters. It's also not possible for a whale to swallow something as large as a human, which is why the kayaker was spat out. While humpbacks have massive mouths, their throats are much smaller - only around the size of your fist. They can't even swallow large fish like tuna. It is more likely that the whale scooped up Adrián by accident while trying to feed on a school of fish. Studies suggest whales are at increasing risk from humans and this incident serves as an important reminder to give these large marine animals their space. Whale deaths from collisions with ships have increased in recent years with up to 30,000 killed or injured each year, according to the World Cetacean Alliance. Everything from fishing fleets to cargo ships and whale-watching vessels poses a significant threat - especially to large whale species, many of which are endangered. Whale strandings on beaches have also become a recurring issue in the last decade due to the increasing impact of humans on our oceans. These marine creatures are a living barometer of this impact, telling us vital information about the health of our waters.
Yahoo
16-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Kayaker Swallowed by Whale Details Inside of Creature's Mouth
Originally appeared on E! Online Call him Adrián, who was swallowed by a whale and lived to tell the tale. Adrián Simancas was kayaking off the coast of southern Chile with his dad Dell Simancas earlier this month when giant humpback whale surfaced and briefly caught him—and his kayak—in its mouth before spitting him out, unharmed. The 24-year-old's father had filmed the incident and the video has gone viral. In a new interview, Adrián described what it was like being scooped up inside the creature's mouth, nothing that he didn't know at first that it was a whale. "Suddenly, I felt like, a wave struck me from behind," he told CNN in an interview released Feb. 13. "But it was very, very heavy to be anything like that. So when I turned around, I saw some blue, dark colors and white flashing right through my face and I felt a slimy texture in my cheek. And then it shut down on me and took me underwater." More from E! Online How Elon Musk's Daughter Vivian Learned He Fathered More Kids SNL 50 Red Carpet Fashion: See Every Celebrity Arrive (Live Updates) BAFTA Film Awards 2025: See the Complete Winners List (Live Updates) Adrián said he guessed he was "inside something's mouth" but didn't know it was a whale. And the experience brought to mind a certain Disney film. "It was just a second but it felt like more time because I was thinking a lot of stuff. I remembered about Pinocchio," he said, referring to the 1940 animated film, which sees its hero swallowed by a giant sperm whale named Monstro. "It was surprising. I wasn't expecting that at all." Adrián said he could have lost his life had he been swallowed by a different creature. "At first, I thought that I would die because there's nothing I can do if I am inside the mouth of a giant fish. But it was a whale," he said. "So I didn't have enough time to realize that I was not in danger." These incidents involving humpback whales are rare. In 2021, American lobster diver Michael Packard was swallowed briefly by one as well. 'All of a sudden, I felt this huge shove and the next thing I knew it was completely black," he told the Cape Cod Times. "I could sense I was moving, and I could feel the whale squeezing with the muscles in his mouth." He said that after less than a minute of being in pitch blackness, "I saw light, and he started throwing his head side to side, and the next thing I knew I was outside." Ultimately, it is scientifically impossible for a humpback whale to fully swallow a human, although it can easily fit one inside its huge mouth, which can reach around 10 feet, according to Nicola Hodgins of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation, a U.K. nonprofit. The reason? A humpback's throat is roughly the size of a human fist, she told National Geographic in 2021, and can only stretch to about 15 inches in diameter. For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News App
Arab Times
15-02-2025
- Arab Times
A humpback whale briefly swallows kayaker in Chilean Patagonia — and it's all captured on camera
PUNTA ARENAS, Chile (AP) — A humpback whale briefly swallowed a kayaker off Chilean Patagonia before quickly releasing him unharmed. The incident, caught on camera, quickly went viral. Last Saturday, Adrián Simancas was kayaking with his father, Dell, in Bahía El Águila near the San Isidro Lighthouse in the Strait of Magellan when a humpback whale surfaced, engulfing Adrián and his yellow kayak for a few seconds before letting him go. Dell, just meters (yards) away, captured the moment on video while encouraging his son to stay calm. 'Stay calm, stay calm,' he can be heard saying after his son was released from the whale's mouth. 'I thought I was dead,' Adrián told The Associated Press. 'I thought it had eaten me, that it had swallowed me.' He described the 'terror' of those few seconds and explained that his real fear set in only after resurfacing, fearing that the huge animal would hurt his father or that he would perish in the frigid waters. Despite the terrifying experience, Dell remained focused, filming and reassuring his son while grappling with his worry. 'When I came up and started floating, I was scared that something might happen to my father too, that we wouldn't reach the shore in time, or that I would get hypothermia,' Adrián said. After a few seconds in the water, Adrián managed to reach his father's kayak and was quickly assisted. Despite the scare, both returned to shore uninjured. Located about 1,600 miles (3,000 kilometers) south of Santiago, Chile's capital, the Strait of Magellan is a major tourist attraction in the Chilean Patagonia, known for adventure activities. Its frigid waters pose a challenge for sailors, swimmers and explorers who attempt to cross it in different ways. Although it's summer in the Southern Hemisphere, temperatures in the region remain cool, with minimums dropping to 39 degrees Fahrenheit (4 degrees Celsius) and highs rarely exceeding 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius.) While whale attacks on humans are extremely rare in Chilean waters, whale deaths from collisions with cargo ships have increased in recent years, and strandings have become a recurring issue in the last decade.
