This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/venezuela-investigating-possible-disappearance-of-28-miners/2016/03/07/aa82544a-e477-11e5-a9ce-681055c7a05f_story.html

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Venezuela investigating possible disappearance of 28 miners Venezuela investigating possible disappearance of 28 miners
(about 1 hour later)
CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan officials say they’re looking into the alleged killing of 28 miners in the southeastern jungle state of Bolivar.CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan officials say they’re looking into the alleged killing of 28 miners in the southeastern jungle state of Bolivar.
Families say the miners were murdered Friday in a dispute over a gold claim. The South American country’s public prosecutor’s office said Sunday it was opening an investigation. Families say the wildcat miners were murdered Friday in a dispute over a gold claim. They say a gang seeking to control the claim dismembered the miners operating there illegally, threw their bodies in trucks and took them away.
State Governor Francisco Rangel is denying that any massacre took place. He says local law enforcement officials found no bodies at the alleged scene of the crime. The South American country’s public prosecutor’s office announced Sunday it was opening an investigation.
A local community is demanding further investigation and has blocked the main road connecting the region to the border with Brazil. State Gov. Francisco Rangel, a staunch ally of the socialist administration, denied that any massacre took place, saying local police investigated reports of a shootout, but found no bodies at the mine.
Opposition lawmaker Americo De Grazia says state government may be complicit in the crime. He is comparing the case to the disappearance of 43 Mexican students in the hands of police in 2014. “Once again, irresponsible politicians are trying to sow chaos in Bolivar state with FALSE information about murdered miners,” he wrote on Twitter, accusing opposition politicians of trying to discredit the government’s campaign to root out illegal mining.
Families and people who said they witnessed the attack are demanding further investigation and blocked the main road connecting the region to the border with Brazil.
Juan Jose Coello said he last spoke with his son on Friday, shortly before he left for the mine.
“I’m not asking for justice. Right now, I’m just asking that they return the body of my son, so I can give him a Christian burial,” he told The Associated Press.
Opposition lawmaker Americo De Grazia accused the state government of complicity in the crime, which he said is one nearly two dozen similar incidents that have taken place over the past decade. De Grazia compared the case to the disappearance of 43 Mexican students in the hands of police in 2014.
Many foreign companies once operated mining concessions in the gold and diamond-rich region, but most of those projects have either been canceled or rendered inactive in recent years, according to Diego Moya-Ocampos, an analyst with the London-based consulting firm IHS Global Insight.
“The area, located in the jungle and of difficult access, has been taken over by local gangs which continue profiting significantly from illegal mining and a weak state presence,” Moya-Ocampos wrote in a note to investors.
___
Associated Press writer Fabiola Sanchez contributed to this report.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.