Bassil Da Costa

Bassil Da Costa[a] (Guatire, 7 May 1990 – Caracas, 12 February 2014) was a Venezuelan university student, killed during the 2014 protests against the Venezuelan government, the first death of the wave of protests.[1] Da Costa was a marketing student at the Universidad Alejandro de Humboldt in Caracas.[2]

Bassil Da Costa
Graffiti of Da Costa
Born
Bassil Alejandro Da Costa[a] Frías

(1990-05-07)May 7, 1990
Guatire, Venezuela[1]
Died12 February 2014 (2014-02-13) (aged 23)
Caracas, Venezuela
Cause of deathGunshot
NationalityVenezuelan
OccupationStudent
Known forFirst death during the 2014 Venezuelan protests
Parent(s)Alejandro Da Costa
Jeneth Frías
External video
video icon ¿Quién mató a Bassil da Costa?, Chronology of the 12 February 2014 events

Death

On 12 February 2014, Youth Day in Venezuela, various parties in opposition to the Venezuelan government and student groups marched in the entire country in protest against the government. In Caracas, the protest march was held from Plaza Venezuela to the Public Ministry's offices in the city's downtown.[3][4] The demonstration itself went smoothly, but after it was finished conflict arose with a shootout in which Da Costa and Juan Montoya, member of a colectivo, were killed.

On 13 February 2014, President Nicolás Maduro stated Da Costa and Montoya were killed by the same person, and that the murders were part of the violence generated by the opposition on 12 February 2014.[5] The Secretary of the Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD), the opposition coalition, Ramón Guillermo Aveledo, rejected President Maduro's statements and maintained the protesters were not ill-intended, while hinting at possible government infiltrates in the march.[6]

Investigations

The first investigations made by the Cuerpo de Investigaciones Científicas, Penales y Criminalísticas (CICPC) identified at least three members of the Bolivarian Intelligence Service (SEBIN) who had shot against protesters near the Public Ministry offices the day of the march, amongst them the alleged killer of Da Costa.[7]

Days later, Últimas Noticias published the results of an investigative work on the murders, in which it claimed to have discovered both men in uniform and civilians had shot against the protesters on the 12th of February.[8] In April 2014, six SEBIN officers were apprehended and the alleged murderer of Da Costa was formally indicted.[9]

The trial on Da Costa and Montoya's murders was delayed in various occasions,[10] until it finally started on 16 June 2015, over a year after they took place.[11] One of the SEBIN officers was sentenced to prison in 2016.[12]

See also

Notes
  1. ^ Also spelt as "Dacosta" by the media.

References
  1. "Bassil Da Costa, el estudiante asesinado tras recibir disparo en protesta opositora". Últimas Noticias (in Spanish). Caracas. 13 February 2014. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  2. "DUELO: "Dios, te entrego a mi hijo"". Reportero24 (in Spanish). 15 February 2014. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  3. "Estos son los puntos de concentración de la marcha 12F de los estudiantes". Su Noticiero (in Spanish). 11 February 2014. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  4. "Así marchó la oposición en Venezuela (Fotos)". La Patilla (in Spanish). 12 February 2014. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  5. "Maduro: Fueron asesinadas con la misma pistola dos víctimas de la violencia opositora el 12-F". Correo del Orinoco (in Spanish). 13 February 2014. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  6. "La MUD rechaza la violencia y se declara en luto". Últimas Noticias (in Spanish). Caracas. 13 February 2014. Archived from the original on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  7. "Identificaron al homicida de Montoya y Dacosta". Notitarde (in Spanish). 19 February 2014. Archived from the original on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  8. "Reportaje de ÚN sobre el 12-F se lleva el premio IPYS". Últimas Noticias (in Spanish). Caracas. 23 June 2014. Archived from the original on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  9. "Acusan a funcionario del Sebín por el asesinato de Bassil Dacosta". El Nacional (in Spanish). Caracas. 11 April 2014. Archived from the original on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  10. "Inicio del juicio a asesinos de Bassil Da Costa fue diferido por cuarta vez". El Universal (in Spanish). Caracas. 10 April 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  11. "Comenzó juicio por el asesinato de Bassil Dacosta". Runrun.es (in Spanish). 16 June 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2015.
  12. "A nueve años de sus asesinatos, persiste el recuerdo de Bassil Da Costa y Robert Redman" [Nine years after their murders, the memory of Bassil Da Costa and Robert Redman persists]. El Diario (in Spanish). 12 February 2023.
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