The Truth About El Salvador's Mega Prison

What A Day

Crooked Media

News, Daily News

4.6 • 12K Ratings

🗓️ 7 August 2025

⏱️ 22 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

We’re starting to hear the horror stories from some of the Venezuelan men who the Trump Administration deported to the Salvadoran super-max prison known as CECOT. Many of the migrants, who were abruptly released and sent back to Venezuela last month as part of a prisoner exchange with the U.S., allege they suffered physical, psychological and sexual abuse during their detention. At least one man is trying to sue the U.S. government over his time in CECOT. And then there’s Andry José Hernández Romero, the gay makeup artist whose story garnered national attention after his arrest. He says he faced constant harassment in the prison because of his sexual orientation. Melissa Shepard, director of legal services at the Immigrant Defenders Law Center and one of Romero’s legal representatives, joins us to talk his story and others who were detained at CECOT. And in headlines: President Donald Trump suggested he may soon meet in person with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Texas Democrats were forced to evacuate their Illinois hotel because of a fake bomb threat, and the Department of Homeland Security lifted age limits on Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

Transcript

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0:00.0	It's Thursday, August 7th.
0:04.1	I'm Jane Koston, and this is What a Day, the show shouting out the New Zealand Air Force
0:08.0	for rescuing three people from a U.S. research base in Antarctica, despite the complete
0:12.9	darkness of Antarctic winter and temperatures at minus 10 Fahrenheit.
0:17.8	On a related note, I will not be traveling to Antarctica in winter.
0:29.5	On today's show, Texas Dems face a bomb threat at their hotel as they protest redistricting
0:34.5	votes. And the Department of Homeland Security lifts age limits on immigration and customs enforcement
0:39.7	officers and offers some major incentives.
0:42.5	But let's start by talking about the Terrorism Confinement Center, or Seacott.
0:47.2	That's the Salvadoran Supermax prison to which the Trump administration has deported hundreds
0:51.4	of migrants.
0:52.6	Officials alleged these men were violent gang
0:54.7	members with little evidence. We are starting to hear the horror stories from some of the
0:59.3	Venezuelan men who were sent there about four months ago, until they were abruptly released last
1:03.8	month in a prisoner exchange. ProPublica published an interview with one of those men on Wednesday.
1:09.2	His name is Juan Jose Ramos Ramos.
1:11.9	He came to the U.S. legally during the Biden administration.
1:14.8	Ramos says he was in the middle of his immigration case when he was deported.
1:18.4	He says prior to his detention at Sikot, he'd never been to jail in his life.
1:22.9	Entra-to-bo-o-officials who were in the guard to pegart.
1:25.7	Even, much, much, he was the same director, the penal, to pegart. I don't know much for an eye, so that me pegged in the head. We're offerrrable to God. He says there, all the officers would come in and beat you. Many times it was even the prison director who hit you. I can barely see through one eye from all the blows to the head. His story is not
1:45.2	unique. In an interview with NBC News, three men sent to Seacott alleged that they suffered physical,
	...

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