Llaguno Overpass events: Difference between revisions

Llaguno Overpass events
Llaguno Overpass events
	View from the Llaguno Overpass down to Baralt Avenue.
Lead figures
	• Pro-government demonstrators • National Guard • Bolivarian Circles • Anti-government demonstrators • Metropolitan Police
Casualties and losses
	19 dead ; 127 injured

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The Llaguno Overpass (Puente Llaguno in Spanish), also known as the Llaguno Bridge, is a bridge in central Caracas, Venezuela, near the Miraflores Palace, made infamous by the events of 11 April 2002, when a shootout took place between the Caracas Metropolitan Police [es] and the pro-government Bolivarian Circles, also known as El Silencio Massacre, causing 19 deaths and 127 injured people. The events preceded the 2002 Venezuelan coup attempt. President Chávez was later arrested by the military.^[1]^[2]^[3] Chávez's request for asylum in Cuba was denied, and he was ordered to be tried in a Venezuelan court.^[4]

Background

11 April march

The crisis came when "workers and business leaders," infuriated by Chávez's "meddling in the state oil company," as the Chicago Tribune put it, joined in "calling for a general strike that cut exports" in support of striking oil workers.^[5] The strike began, according to The Washington Post, "as a managerial protest at the state-run oil company, but evolved into a broad effort supported by the country's largest business and labor groups to force Chávez from power."^[6]

On 11 April, hundreds of thousands to millions of Venezuelans marched to the PDVSA headquarters later that day to protest against the recent dismissal of the management board.^[7]^[8] Once at the headquarters, those present at the rally began to chant "To Miraflores! To Miraflores! To Miraflores!", in reference to the Miraflores Presidential Palace.^[9]^[10] In response, Carlos Ortega declared: "This human river is now going to Miraflores to ask for your resignation", referring to Chávez.^[10] The National Guard would later counter the concentration in Chuao and, equipped with firearms, would confront the demonstrators in the vicinity of the Miraflores Palace.^[11]^[12]

Shootout

By 12:30 pm, thousands of government supporters were gathered around the palace blocking all routes to Miraflores except for the Llaguno Overpass, which was where the Bolivarian Circles had gathered to overlook the route.^[13]

Since other routes were blocked by the National Guard, many marchers began to head down Baralt Avenue in order to reach Miraflores.^[14] On Baralt Avenue, near the Llaguno Overpass as the march inched closer hundreds of Chávez supporters gathered and began throwing large rocks, Molotov cocktails and even tear gas at the demonstrators.^[14]^[15]^[16] As marchers and Chavistas clashed, the Metropolitan Police attempted to separate both sides from further confrontation with two trucks with water cannons.^[14]

A few minutes after Chávez's broadcast at 3:45 pm, gunfire erupted again and the march began to disperse slightly.^[17] Police and Chavista supporters exchanged gunfire and the marchers fled shortly after as the violence grew.^[17] According to medical staff at the Vargas Hospital, the first to arrive at the hospital were opposition marchers.^[18]^{[better source needed]}^{[undue weight? – discuss]} According to surgeons, the marchers had been shot in the back with handgun fire while fleeing and others were severely injured from 7.62×51mm NATO military rounds from Fal rifles, standard equipment of the National Guard defending Chávez.^[18]^{[better source needed]}^{[undue weight? – discuss]} Later after police responded to pro-Chávez shooting, Chávez supporters then began being seen injured in the hospitals.^[18] As a result of the confrontations, 19 were left dead,^[19] most killed between 3:20 pm and 3:55 pm, and over 150 injured.^[20] A vehicle used by the Metropolitan Police later showed that approximately 600 bullets impacted the vehicle's side that was facing north toward the Puente Llaguno bridge according to El Universal.^[21]

President Chávez was subsequently arrested by the military.^[22]^[23]^[24] Chávez's request for asylum in Cuba was denied, and he was ordered to be tried in a Venezuelan court.^[25]

Responsibility

The majority of the violence that took place on 11 April 2002 was near the Llaguno Overpass. There is no consensus as to who was responsible for the deaths on that day, and this remains a very controversial issue. The opposition version of events puts the blame on Chávez, or at least on his supporters. Many groups of the Bolivarian Circles gathered near the Llaguno Overpass before the march reached the area.^[26] A Venevisión camera positioned on a rooftop that afternoon captured images of people using handguns to shoot from the pro-Chávez counter-march being held on the Llaguno Overpass, an overpass that crosses one of central Caracas's busiest avenues. A number of high-ranking military officers, led by Vice Admiral Héctor Ramírez, recorded a video message broadcast later in the day that held Chávez responsible for massacring innocent people using snipers, referring to at least six dead and dozens wounded. CNN correspondent Otto Neustald Neustald reported that the message was recorded at least two hours before the killings started. However, this claim has never been proven and is contested by other reporters present, such as Javier Ignacio Mayorca, Mayela León and Adrián Criscaut, who affirmed that the military officers were informed of the death of Tortoza during the filming of the message.^[27]

Several witnesses reported seeing people shooting from two specific locations: the Ausonia Hotel and the Eden Hotel. The head of the Casa Militar at the time, the guard of the president of Venezuela, Colonel Almidien Ramon Moreno Acosta, states in a report presented on May 15, 2002 before the National Assembly that ten suspects were detained on April 11 under the accusation of being snipers. Three of them were captured by a group of unidentified citizens and handed over to Casa Militar. There were no reports as to whether any firearms were seized from them. The remaining seven were captured directly by officers of the Guardia de Honor, the Casa Militar.^[28]

The seven individuals were fully identified because they had registered with their real names at the Ausonia Hotel. Only one of them was carrying an unfired .38 caliber weapon. On April 12 they were handed over to the Prosecutor's Office and tried in court, but were released because there was insufficient evidence to charge them. The revolver had not been fired and no traces were found on any part of the detainees' bodies or clothing.^[28]

The La Nacional building housed the offices of pro-Chávez mayor Freddy Bernal.^[29] Bernal, a Chávez supporter and former leader of an elite police force, was accused by a Venezuelan military officer of complying with orders from the Defense Ministry to shoot opposition demonstrators.^[29] It was also reported that the National Guard, which was firing tear gas and combatting the opposition protesters, did not pay any attention to the gunmen on the La Nacional building and that it was the Metropolitan Police who had attempted to go to the building.^[30] Bernal dismissed the allegations as "totally false".^[29]

The 2003 documentary titled The Revolution Will Not Be Televised contradicts claims by private media in Venezuela that the pro-Chávez group was firing on the opposition protest from Llaguno Bridge. In the documentary, footage captured from another angle by an amateur cameraman shows pro-Chávez gunmen firing over an empty street with no apparent opposition protesters below. Further, the film makers claim that the opposition march never went down that street. While this documentary has been criticized by another called X-Ray of a Lie and American academic Brian Nelson, who argue that the footage is manipulated and obscures Metropolitan Police on the street below,^[31]^{[self-published source]} it's not clear whether this is relevant to the veracity of the claim that pro-Chávez gunmen were not firing on opposition protesters from the bridge.

The 2004 documentary Puente Llaguno: Claves de una Masacre claimed that the Chavistas on the bridge did not begin shooting until 4:38 pm, by which time most of the opposition deaths had already occurred. Nelson responds that such claims are false by showing that opposition demonstrator Jesús Arellano was killed just before 2:30 pm, with photos showing Chavistas further up the street brandishing firearms and closer than purported by the earlier sources.^[31]^{[self-published source]}

References

^ "Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía". El Universal (in Spanish). 2 January 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2010. Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,
^ "Veneconomía" (PDF) (in Spanish). 15 March 2006. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
^ Rey, J. C. (2002), "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado" Archived 3 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", International Political Science Review, 28(4), p498)
^ Bellos, Alex (15 April 2002). "Chavez rises from very peculiar coup". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
^ Chicago Tribune, April 16, 2002, Tuesday, Military played crucial roles in Chavez's ouster, return, BYLINE: By Patrice M. Jones, Tribune Foreign Correspondent, SECTION: NEWS; ZONE: N; Pg. 3
^ The Washington Post, April 13, 2002 Saturday, Leader of Venezuela Is Forced To Resign; Ex-Oil Executive Takes Office as Interim President, BYLINE: Scott Wilson, Washington Post Foreign Service, SECTION: A SECTION; Pg. A01
^ Hawkins, Kirk A. (2010). Venezuela's Chavismo and populism in comparative perspective (1st publ. ed.). New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521765039.
^ Newsweek, 29 April 2002, Hugo's Close Call
^ Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 13. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ ^a ^b Molina, Alfonso (2012). 2002 El año que vivimos en la calle Conversaciones con Carlos Ortega (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Libros marcados. pp. 64, 69, 81. ISBN 978-980-408-017-3.
^ "Fotografías de Abril de 2002: de la marcha al golpe // @Orinoquiaphoto en #ImagoMundi". Prodavinci (in Spanish). 11 April 2016. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
^ Los Angeles Times, 21 April 2002 Sunday, "He's In, He's Out, He's In", BYLINE: SANDRA HERNANDEZ, SECTION: OPINION; Part M; p. 1
^ Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 23–25. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ ^a ^b ^c Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 29–32. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 29–30. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 34. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ ^a ^b Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 41–44. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ ^a ^b ^c Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 103–106. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ The Washington Times, 25 April 2002, Thursday, Final Edition, "The fall and rise of Hugo Chavez", SECTION: EDITORIALS; p. A18
^ Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 1–8. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ "LOS POLICÍAS SENTENCIADOS". El Universal. 7 April 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
^ "Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía". El Universal (in Spanish). 2 January 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2010. Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,
^ "Veneconomía" (PDF) (in Spanish). 15 March 2006. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
^ Rey, J. C. (2002), "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado" Archived 3 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", International Political Science Review, 28(4), p498)
^ Bellos, Alex (15 April 2002). "Chavez rises from very peculiar coup". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
^ Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 23. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ Meza, Alfredo; Lafuente, Sandra (2012). El acertijo de abril (in Spanish). La Hoja del Norte. ISBN 978-980-7212-14-4.
^ ^a ^b "Puente Llaguno: Cinco policías venezolanos están aún tras las rejas". Diario Las Américas (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-06-12.
^ ^a ^b ^c Rohter, Larry (25 June 2010). "Oliver Stone's Latin America". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
^ Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 59. ISBN 978-1568584188.
^ ^a ^b Nelson, Brian Andrew. "A PHOTOGRAPHIC CHRONOLOGY OF THE VIOLENCE ON BARALT AVENUE". BrianAndrewNelson.com. Retrieved 12 August 2015.

[Ref_2008-1] "Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía". El Universal (in Spanish). 2 January 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2010. Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,

[Ref_2006-2] "Veneconomía" (PDF) (in Spanish). 15 March 2006. Retrieved 29 January 2010.

[Ref_-3] Rey, J. C. (2002), "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado" Archived 3 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", International Political Science Review, 28(4), p498)

[Bellos2-4] Bellos, Alex (15 April 2002). "Chavez rises from very peculiar coup". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 February 2015.

[CT2-5] Chicago Tribune, April 16, 2002, Tuesday, Military played crucial roles in Chavez's ouster, return, BYLINE: By Patrice M. Jones, Tribune Foreign Correspondent, SECTION: NEWS; ZONE: N; Pg. 3

[WashingtonPost-6] The Washington Post, April 13, 2002 Saturday, Leader of Venezuela Is Forced To Resign; Ex-Oil Executive Takes Office as Interim President, BYLINE: Scott Wilson, Washington Post Foreign Service, SECTION: A SECTION; Pg. A01

[HAWK3-7] Hawkins, Kirk A. (2010). Venezuela's Chavismo and populism in comparative perspective (1st publ. ed.). New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521765039.

[Ref_o3-8] Newsweek, 29 April 2002, Hugo's Close Call

[p13NELSON3-9] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 13. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[:12-10] Molina, Alfonso (2012). 2002 El año que vivimos en la calle Conversaciones con Carlos Ortega (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Libros marcados. pp. 64, 69, 81. ISBN 978-980-408-017-3.

[11] "Fotografías de Abril de 2002: de la marcha al golpe // @Orinoquiaphoto en #ImagoMundi". Prodavinci (in Spanish). 11 April 2016. Retrieved 2022-06-12.

[LAT_22-12] Los Angeles Times, 21 April 2002 Sunday, "He's In, He's Out, He's In", BYLINE: SANDRA HERNANDEZ, SECTION: OPINION; Part M; p. 1

[p2325NELSON4-13] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 23–25. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[p2932NELSON2-14] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 29–32. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[p2930NELSON2-15] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 29–30. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[p34NELSON2-16] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 34. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[p4144NELSON2-17] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 41–44. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[p103106NELSON2-18] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 103–106. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[TWT2-19] The Washington Times, 25 April 2002, Thursday, Final Edition, "The fall and rise of Hugo Chavez", SECTION: EDITORIALS; p. A18

[Nelson12-20] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. pp. 1–8. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[21] "LOS POLICÍAS SENTENCIADOS". El Universal. 7 April 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2015.

[Ref_20082-22] "Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía". El Universal (in Spanish). 2 January 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2010. Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,

[Ref_20062-23] "Veneconomía" (PDF) (in Spanish). 15 March 2006. Retrieved 29 January 2010.

[Ref_2-24] Rey, J. C. (2002), "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado" Archived 3 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", International Political Science Review, 28(4), p498)

[Bellos-25] Bellos, Alex (15 April 2002). "Chavez rises from very peculiar coup". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 February 2015.

[26] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 23. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[:02-27] Meza, Alfredo; Lafuente, Sandra (2012). El acertijo de abril (in Spanish). La Hoja del Norte. ISBN 978-980-7212-14-4.

[:22-28] "Puente Llaguno: Cinco policías venezolanos están aún tras las rejas". Diario Las Américas (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-06-12.

[NYTlr3-29] Rohter, Larry (25 June 2010). "Oliver Stone's Latin America". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 September 2015.

[30] Nelson, Brian A. (2009). The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela (online ed.). New York: Nation Books. p. 59. ISBN 978-1568584188.

[PHOTObrian3-31] Nelson, Brian Andrew. "A PHOTOGRAPHIC CHRONOLOGY OF THE VIOLENCE ON BARALT AVENUE". BrianAndrewNelson.com. Retrieved 12 August 2015.

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-The '''Llaguno Overpass''' ('''''Puente Llaguno''''' in Spanish), also known as the '''Llaguno Bridge''', is a bridge in central [[Caracas]], [[Venezuela]], near the [[Miraflores Palace]], made infamous by the events of 11 April 2002, when a shootout took place between the {{ill|Caracas Metropolitan Police|es|Policía Metropolitana de Caracas}} and the pro-government [[Bolivarian Circles]], also known as '''El Silencio Massacre''', causing 19 deaths and 127 injured people. The events preceded the [[2002 Venezuelan coup d'état attempt|2002 Venezuelan coup attempt]]. The military high command refused [[Hugo Chávez]]'s order to implement the ''[[Plan Ávila]]'' as a response to protests against him, a military [[contingency plan]] by the army to maintain public order last used in 1989 during The ''[[Caracazo]]'', and demanded him to resign.<ref name="p2325NELSON2">{{cite book|last1=Nelson|first1=Brian A.|title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela|date=2009|publisher=Nation Books|isbn=978-1568584188|edition=online|location=New York|pages=23–25}}</ref> President Chávez was subsequently arrested by the military.<ref name="Ref_2008">{{cite web|date=2 January 2008|title=Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía|url=http://politica.eluniversal.com/2008/01/02/pol_ava_esposa-de-gebauer-es_02A1282403.shtml|access-date=31 January 2010|work=[[El Universal (Caracas)|El Universal]]|language=es|quote=Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,}}</ref><ref name="Ref_2006">{{cite web|date=15 March 2006|title=Veneconomía|url=http://www.veneconomy.com/site/files/articulos/artEsp3586_2470.pdf|access-date=29 January 2010|language=es}}</ref><ref name="Ref_">Rey, J. C. (2002), [http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103201015/http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp|date=3 January 2009}}, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", ''International Political Science Review'', 28(4), p498)</ref> Chávez's request for asylum in Cuba was denied, and he was ordered to be tried in a Venezuelan court.<ref name="Bellos2">{{cite web|last1=Bellos|first1=Alex|title=Chavez rises from very peculiar coup|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/15/venezuela.alexbellos|access-date=8 February 2015|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=15 April 2002}}</ref>
+The '''Llaguno Overpass''' ('''''Puente Llaguno''''' in Spanish), also known as the '''Llaguno Bridge''', is a bridge in central [[Caracas]], [[Venezuela]], near the [[Miraflores Palace]], made infamous by the events of 11 April 2002, when a shootout took place between the {{ill|Caracas Metropolitan Police|es|Policía Metropolitana de Caracas}} and the pro-government [[Bolivarian Circles]], also known as '''El Silencio Massacre''', causing 19 deaths and 127 injured people. The events preceded the [[2002 Venezuelan coup d'état attempt|2002 Venezuelan coup attempt]]. President Chávez was later arrested by the military.<ref name="Ref_2008">{{cite web|date=2 January 2008|title=Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía|url=http://politica.eluniversal.com/2008/01/02/pol_ava_esposa-de-gebauer-es_02A1282403.shtml|access-date=31 January 2010|work=[[El Universal (Caracas)|El Universal]]|language=es|quote=Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,}}</ref><ref name="Ref_2006">{{cite web|date=15 March 2006|title=Veneconomía|url=http://www.veneconomy.com/site/files/articulos/artEsp3586_2470.pdf|access-date=29 January 2010|language=es}}</ref><ref name="Ref_">Rey, J. C. (2002), [http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103201015/http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp|date=3 January 2009}}, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", ''International Political Science Review'', 28(4), p498)</ref> Chávez's request for asylum in Cuba was denied, and he was ordered to be tried in a Venezuelan court.<ref name="Bellos2">{{cite web|last1=Bellos|first1=Alex|title=Chavez rises from very peculiar coup|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/15/venezuela.alexbellos|access-date=8 February 2015|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=15 April 2002}}</ref>
 ==Background==
 ===11 April march===
-The crisis came when "workers and business leaders," infuriated by Chávez's "meddling in the state oil company," as the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'' put it, joined in "calling for a general strike that cut exports" in support of striking oil workers.<ref name="CT2">Chicago Tribune, April 16, 2002, Tuesday, Military played crucial roles in Chavez's ouster, return, BYLINE: By Patrice M. Jones, Tribune Foreign Correspondent, SECTION: NEWS; ZONE: N; Pg. 3</ref> The strike began, according to ''[[The Washington Post]]'', "as a managerial protest at the state-run oil company, but evolved into a broad effort supported by the country's largest business and labor groups to force Chávez from power."<ref name="WashingtonPost">The Washington Post, April 13, 2002 Saturday, Leader of Venezuela Is Forced To Resign; Ex-Oil Executive Takes Office as Interim President, BYLINE: Scott Wilson, Washington Post Foreign Service, SECTION: A SECTION; Pg. A01</ref> After days of general strikes and protests involving thousands of Venezuelans, on 10 April, a speech was held at the CTV headquarters, where CTV and Fedecámaras held speeches that involved a Brigadier General denouncing Chávez's alleged involvement with [[FARC]], and the announcement of a march the next day with the possibility of an indefinite strike.<ref name=USdosPARO>{{cite web|title="PARO" UPDATE/GENERAL STRIKE ANNOUNCED|url=https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/146780.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101128131840/http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/146780.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 November 2010|website=[[United States Department of State]]|accessdate=6 February 2015}}</ref> The march on 11 April was to begin at 9:00am, starting at [[Parque del Este]] and ending at the PDVSA headquarters.<ref name=USdosPARO/>
+The crisis came when "workers and business leaders," infuriated by Chávez's "meddling in the state oil company," as the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'' put it, joined in "calling for a general strike that cut exports" in support of striking oil workers.<ref name="CT2">Chicago Tribune, April 16, 2002, Tuesday, Military played crucial roles in Chavez's ouster, return, BYLINE: By Patrice M. Jones, Tribune Foreign Correspondent, SECTION: NEWS; ZONE: N; Pg. 3</ref> The strike began, according to ''[[The Washington Post]]'', "as a managerial protest at the state-run oil company, but evolved into a broad effort supported by the country's largest business and labor groups to force Chávez from power."<ref name="WashingtonPost">The Washington Post, April 13, 2002 Saturday, Leader of Venezuela Is Forced To Resign; Ex-Oil Executive Takes Office as Interim President, BYLINE: Scott Wilson, Washington Post Foreign Service, SECTION: A SECTION; Pg. A01</ref>
-On 11 April, just hours before an operation to take over the PDVSA by force was to begin, General Rosendo, knowing the consequences of such an action, talked Chávez out of the plan.<ref name="p51NELSON3">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |page=51}}</ref> Later that day, hundreds of thousands to millions of Venezuelans marched to the [[PDVSA]] headquarters later that day to protest against the recent dismissal of the management board.<ref name="HAWK3">{{cite book |last1=Hawkins |first1=Kirk A. |title=Venezuela's Chavismo and populism in comparative perspective |date=2010 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9780521765039 |edition=1st publ. |location=New York}}</ref><ref name="Ref_o3">''[[Newsweek]]'', 29 April 2002, [http://www.newsweek.com/2002/04/28/hugo-s-close-call.html Hugo's Close Call]</ref> Once at the headquarters, those present at the rally began to chant "To Miraflores! To Miraflores! To Miraflores!", in reference to the [[Miraflores Palace|Miraflores Presidential Palace]].<ref name="p13NELSON3">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |page=13}}</ref><ref name=":12">{{Cite book |last=Molina |first=Alfonso |title=2002 El año que vivimos en la calle Conversaciones con Carlos Ortega |publisher=Libros marcados |year=2012 |isbn=978-980-408-017-3 |edition=1st |pages=64, 69, 81 |language=es}}</ref> In response, Carlos Ortega declared: "This human river is now going to Miraflores to ask for your resignation", referring to Chávez.<ref name=":12" /> The National Guard would later repress the concentration in Chuao and, equipped with firearms, would confront the demonstrators in the vicinity of the Miraflores Palace.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fotografías de Abril de 2002: de la marcha al golpe // @Orinoquiaphoto en #ImagoMundi |url=https://historico.prodavinci.com/blogs/fotografias-de-abril-de-2002-de-la-marcha-al-golpe-orinoquiaphoto-en-imagomundi/ |access-date=2022-06-12 |website=[[Prodavinci]] |language=es |publication-date=11 April 2016}}</ref><ref name="LAT 22">''Los Angeles Times'', 21 April 2002 Sunday, [https://articles.latimes.com/2002/apr/21/opinion/op-hernandez.rtf "He's In, He's Out, He's In"], BYLINE: SANDRA HERNANDEZ, SECTION: OPINION; Part M; p. 1</ref>
+On 11 April, hundreds of thousands to millions of Venezuelans marched to the [[PDVSA]] headquarters later that day to protest against the recent dismissal of the management board.<ref name="HAWK3">{{cite book |last1=Hawkins |first1=Kirk A. |title=Venezuela's Chavismo and populism in comparative perspective |date=2010 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9780521765039 |edition=1st publ. |location=New York}}</ref><ref name="Ref_o3">''[[Newsweek]]'', 29 April 2002, [http://www.newsweek.com/2002/04/28/hugo-s-close-call.html Hugo's Close Call]</ref> Once at the headquarters, those present at the rally began to chant "To Miraflores! To Miraflores! To Miraflores!", in reference to the [[Miraflores Palace|Miraflores Presidential Palace]].<ref name="p13NELSON3">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |page=13}}</ref><ref name=":12">{{Cite book |last=Molina |first=Alfonso |title=2002 El año que vivimos en la calle Conversaciones con Carlos Ortega |publisher=Libros marcados |year=2012 |isbn=978-980-408-017-3 |edition=1st |pages=64, 69, 81 |language=es}}</ref> In response, Carlos Ortega declared: "This human river is now going to Miraflores to ask for your resignation", referring to Chávez.<ref name=":12" /> The National Guard would later counter the concentration in Chuao and, equipped with firearms, would confront the demonstrators in the vicinity of the Miraflores Palace.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Fotografías de Abril de 2002: de la marcha al golpe // @Orinoquiaphoto en #ImagoMundi |url=https://historico.prodavinci.com/blogs/fotografias-de-abril-de-2002-de-la-marcha-al-golpe-orinoquiaphoto-en-imagomundi/ |access-date=2022-06-12 |website=[[Prodavinci]] |language=es |publication-date=11 April 2016}}</ref><ref name="LAT 22">''Los Angeles Times'', 21 April 2002 Sunday, [https://articles.latimes.com/2002/apr/21/opinion/op-hernandez.rtf "He's In, He's Out, He's In"], BYLINE: SANDRA HERNANDEZ, SECTION: OPINION; Part M; p. 1</ref>
 ==Shootout==
-By 12:30 pm, thousands of government supporters were gathered around the palace blocking all routes to Miraflores except for the [[Llaguno Overpass]], which was where the Bolivarian Circles had gathered to overlook the route.<ref name="p2325NELSON4">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=23–25}}</ref> As the march turned a corner and began to approach the Miraflores at about 2:00 pm, the National Guard fired about twelve [[tear gas]] canisters from behind the palace walls and the protesters fled back down the road.<ref name="USdosTALE2">{{cite web |title=TALE OF TWO CITIES – THE MARCH ON MIRAFLORES PALACE |url=https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/146788.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231123620/https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/146788.pdf |archive-date=31 December 2016 |access-date=5 February 2015 |website=[[United States Department of State]]}}</ref> The protesters made it closer to Miraflores and the Presidential Guard responded with more tear gas. About 20 gas canisters caused panic and a dispersion of the demonstrators to areas surrounding the palace.<ref name="USdosTALE2" />
+By 12:30 pm, thousands of government supporters were gathered around the palace blocking all routes to Miraflores except for the [[Llaguno Overpass]], which was where the Bolivarian Circles had gathered to overlook the route.<ref name="p2325NELSON4">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=23–25}}</ref>
 Since other routes were blocked by the National Guard, many marchers began to head down Baralt Avenue in order to reach Miraflores.<ref name="p2932NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=29–32}}</ref> On Baralt Avenue, near the Llaguno Overpass as the march inched closer hundreds of Chávez supporters gathered and began throwing large rocks, Molotov cocktails and even tear gas at the demonstrators.<ref name="p2932NELSON2" /><ref name="p2930NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=29–30}}</ref><ref name="p34NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |page=34}}</ref> As marchers and Chavistas clashed, the Metropolitan Police attempted to separate both sides from further confrontation with two trucks with water cannons.<ref name="p2932NELSON2" />
-A few minutes after Chávez's broadcast at 3:45 pm, gunfire erupted again and the march began to disperse slightly.<ref name="p4144NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=41–44}}</ref> As the demonstrators marched closer to the Llaguno Overpass, they could see Chavistas heavily armed, some with pistols.<ref name="p4144NELSON2" /> Police began to disperse the Chavista gunmen returning fire and few demonstrators began to follow behind them with pings of gunfire heard on the police armored vehicles, though the marchers fled shortly after as the violence grew.<ref name="p4144NELSON2" /> According to medical staff at the Vargas Hospital, the first to arrive at the hospital were opposition marchers.<ref name="p103106NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=103–106}}</ref> According to surgeons, the marchers had been shot in the back with handgun fire while fleeing and others were severely injured from [[7.62×51mm NATO]] military rounds from [[Fal rifle|Fal rifles]], standard equipment of the National Guard defending Chávez.<ref name="p103106NELSON2" /> Later after police responded to pro-Chávez shooting, Chávez supporters then began being seen injured in the hospitals.<ref name="p103106NELSON2" /> As a result of the confrontations, 19 were left dead,<ref name="TWT2">''The Washington Times'', 25 April 2002, Thursday, Final Edition, "[http://w3.nexis.com/new/results/docview/docview.do?docLinkInd=true&risb=21_T17875073295&format=GNBFI&sort=BOOLEAN&startDocNo=1&resultsUrlKey=29_T17875094500&cisb=22_T17875073299&treeMax=true&treeWidth=0&csi=8176&docNo=8 The fall and rise of Hugo Chavez]", SECTION: EDITORIALS; p. A18</ref> most killed between 3:20 pm and 3:55 pm, and over 150 injured.<ref name="Nelson12">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=1–8}}</ref>
+A few minutes after Chávez's broadcast at 3:45 pm, gunfire erupted again and the march began to disperse slightly.<ref name="p4144NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion: the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=41–44}}</ref> Police and Chavista supporters exchanged gunfire and the marchers fled shortly after as the violence grew.<ref name="p4144NELSON2" /> According to medical staff at the Vargas Hospital, the first to arrive at the hospital were opposition marchers.<ref name="p103106NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=103–106}}</ref>{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ([[WP:NOTRS]]).|date=November 2023}}{{Undue weight inline|November 2023}} According to surgeons, the marchers had been shot in the back with handgun fire while fleeing and others were severely injured from [[7.62×51mm NATO]] military rounds from [[Fal rifle|Fal rifles]], standard equipment of the National Guard defending Chávez.<ref name="p103106NELSON2" />{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable ([[WP:NOTRS]]).|date=November 2023}}{{Undue weight inline|November 2023}} Later after police responded to pro-Chávez shooting, Chávez supporters then began being seen injured in the hospitals.<ref name="p103106NELSON2" /> As a result of the confrontations, 19 were left dead,<ref name="TWT2">''The Washington Times'', 25 April 2002, Thursday, Final Edition, "[http://w3.nexis.com/new/results/docview/docview.do?docLinkInd=true&risb=21_T17875073295&format=GNBFI&sort=BOOLEAN&startDocNo=1&resultsUrlKey=29_T17875094500&cisb=22_T17875073299&treeMax=true&treeWidth=0&csi=8176&docNo=8 The fall and rise of Hugo Chavez]", SECTION: EDITORIALS; p. A18</ref> most killed between 3:20 pm and 3:55 pm, and over 150 injured.<ref name="Nelson12">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |pages=1–8}}</ref> A vehicle used by the Metropolitan Police later showed that approximately 600 bullets impacted the vehicle's side that was facing north toward the Puente Llaguno bridge according to [[El Universal (Caracas)|El Universal]].<ref>{{cite news |date=7 April 2013 |title=LOS POLICÍAS SENTENCIADOS |agency=[[El Universal (Caracas)|El Universal]] |url=http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/130407/los-policias-sentenciados |access-date=13 August 2015}}</ref>
-The military high command refused Chávez's order to implement the ''[[Plan Ávila]]'' as a response to the protests, a military [[contingency plan]] by the [[Military of Venezuela|Venezuelan Army]] to maintain public order last used in 1989 during the ''[[Caracazo]]'' that resulted in hundred of deaths, and demanded him to resign.<ref name="p2325NELSON3">{{cite book|last1=Nelson|first1=Brian A.|title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela|date=2009|publisher=Nation Books|isbn=978-1568584188|edition=online|location=New York|pages=23–25}}</ref> President Chávez was subsequently arrested by the military.<ref name="Ref_20082">{{cite web|date=2 January 2008|title=Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía|url=http://politica.eluniversal.com/2008/01/02/pol_ava_esposa-de-gebauer-es_02A1282403.shtml|access-date=31 January 2010|work=[[El Universal (Caracas)|El Universal]]|language=es|quote=Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,}}</ref><ref name="Ref_20062">{{cite web|date=15 March 2006|title=Veneconomía|url=http://www.veneconomy.com/site/files/articulos/artEsp3586_2470.pdf|access-date=29 January 2010|language=es}}</ref><ref name="Ref_2">Rey, J. C. (2002), [http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103201015/http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp|date=3 January 2009}}, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", ''International Political Science Review'', 28(4), p498)</ref> Chávez's request for asylum in Cuba was denied, and he was ordered to be tried in a Venezuelan court.<ref name="Bellos">{{cite web|last1=Bellos|first1=Alex|title=Chavez rises from very peculiar coup|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/15/venezuela.alexbellos|access-date=8 February 2015|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=15 April 2002}}</ref>
+President Chávez was subsequently arrested by the military.<ref name="Ref_20082">{{cite web|date=2 January 2008|title=Esposa de Gebauer espera publicación en Gaceta de Ley de Amnistía|url=http://politica.eluniversal.com/2008/01/02/pol_ava_esposa-de-gebauer-es_02A1282403.shtml|access-date=31 January 2010|work=[[El Universal (Caracas)|El Universal]]|language=es|quote=Otto Gebauer fue imputado por el delito de insubordinación y privación ilegítima de libertad al coronel Hugo Chávez Frías,}}</ref><ref name="Ref_20062">{{cite web|date=15 March 2006|title=Veneconomía|url=http://www.veneconomy.com/site/files/articulos/artEsp3586_2470.pdf|access-date=29 January 2010|language=es}}</ref><ref name="Ref_2">Rey, J. C. (2002), [http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp "Consideraciones políticas sobre un insólito golpe de Estado"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103201015/http://www.analitica.com/bitblioteca/juan_carlos_rey/insolito_golpe.asp|date=3 January 2009}}, pp. 1–16; cited in Cannon (2004:296); "In 2002, Venezuela's military and some of its business leaders ousted President Chavez from power and held him hostage." (N. Scott Cole (2007), "Hugo Chavez and President Bush's credibility gap: The struggle against US democracy promotion", ''International Political Science Review'', 28(4), p498)</ref> Chávez's request for asylum in Cuba was denied, and he was ordered to be tried in a Venezuelan court.<ref name="Bellos">{{cite web|last1=Bellos|first1=Alex|title=Chavez rises from very peculiar coup|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/apr/15/venezuela.alexbellos|access-date=8 February 2015|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=15 April 2002}}</ref>
 ==Responsibility==
+The majority of the violence that took place on 11 April 2002 was near the Llaguno Overpass. There is no consensus as to who was responsible for the deaths on that day, and this remains a very controversial issue. The opposition version of events puts the blame on Chávez, or at least on his supporters. Many groups of the [[Bolivarian Circles]] gathered near the Llaguno Overpass before the march reached the area.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |page=23}}</ref> A ''[[Venevisión]]'' camera positioned on a rooftop that afternoon captured images of people using [[Handgun|handguns]] to shoot from the pro-Chávez counter-march being held on the Llaguno Overpass, an overpass that crosses one of central Caracas's busiest avenues. A number of high-ranking military officers, led by Vice Admiral Héctor Ramírez, recorded a video message broadcast later in the day that held Chávez responsible for massacring innocent people using snipers, referring to at least six dead and dozens wounded. [[CNN]] correspondent Otto Neustald Neustald reported that the message was recorded at least two hours before the killings started. However, this claim has never been proven and is contested by other reporters present, such as Javier Ignacio Mayorca, Mayela León and Adrián Criscaut, who affirmed that the military officers were informed of the death of Tortoza during the filming of the message.<ref name=":02">{{cite book |last1=Meza |first1=Alfredo |title=El acertijo de abril |last2=Lafuente |first2=Sandra |publisher=La Hoja del Norte |year=2012 |isbn=978-980-7212-14-4 |language=es}}</ref>
-{{external media
-|width=310px
-|video1=[http://brianandrewnelson.com/Venezuela/Video_Clips/Killing_of_Jesus_A_2.mov The shooting of opposition marcher Jesús Orlando Arellano, resulting in the first fatality of the day.]
-|video2=[http://brianandrewnelson.com/Venezuela/Video_Clips/Malvina_Tortoza.mov Photographer Jorge Tortoza being shot and killed followed by protester Malvina Pesate being shot in the face from the pro-Chávez crowd.]
-|video3=[http://brianandrewnelson.com/Venezuela/Video_Clips/Death%20of%20sanchez.mp4 Pro-Chávez gunman Erasmo Sánchez being carried away after being shot. He was reportedly the first pro-Chávez fatality of the day.]
-|image1=[http://www.brianandrewnelson.com/PhotoGalleryPages/Silence_Photo_Gallery_home.htm Gallery of the violence and other images related to the coup.]
-}}
-The majority of the violence that took place on 11 April 2002 was near the Llaguno Overpass. There is no consensus as to who was responsible for the deaths on that day, and this remains a very controversial issue. The opposition version of events puts the blame on Chávez, or at least on his supporters. Many groups of the [[Bolivarian Circles]] gathered near the Llaguno Overpass before the march reached the area.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=The silence and the scorpion : the coup against Chávez and the making of modern Venezuela |date=2009 |publisher=Nation Books |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition=online |location=New York |page=23}}</ref> A ''[[Venevisión]]'' camera positioned on a rooftop that afternoon captured images of people using [[Handgun|handguns]] to shoot from the pro-Chávez counter-march being held on the Llaguno Overpass, an overpass that crosses one of central Caracas's busiest avenues. A number of high-ranking military officers, led by Vice Admiral Héctor Ramírez, recorded a video message broadcast later in the day that held Chávez responsible for massacring innocent people using snipers, referring to at least six dead and dozens wounded. [[CNN]] correspondent Otto Neustald Neustald claimed the message was recorded at least two hours before the killings started. However, this claim has never been proven and is contested by the rest of the reporters present, such as Javier Ignacio Mayorca, Mayela León and Adrián Criscaut, who affirmed that the military officers were informed of the death of Tortoza during the filming of the message.<ref name=":02">{{cite book |last1=Meza |first1=Alfredo |title=El acertijo de abril |last2=Lafuente |first2=Sandra |publisher=La Hoja del Norte |year=2012 |isbn=978-980-7212-14-4 |language=es}}</ref>
 Several witnesses reported seeing people shooting from two specific locations: the Ausonia Hotel and the Eden Hotel. The head of the Casa Militar at the time, the guard of the president of Venezuela, Colonel Almidien Ramon Moreno Acosta, states in a report presented on May 15, 2002 before the National Assembly that ten suspects were detained on April 11 under the accusation of being snipers. Three of them were captured by a group of unidentified citizens and handed over to ''Casa Militar''. There were no reports as to whether any firearms were seized from them. The remaining seven were captured directly by officers of the Guardia de Honor, the ''Casa Militar''.<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |title=Puente Llaguno: Cinco policías venezolanos están aún tras las rejas |url=https://www.diariolasamericas.com/puente-llaguno-cinco-policias-venezolanos-estan-aun-las-rejas-n3062872 |access-date=2022-06-12 |website=[[Diario Las Américas]] |language=es}}</ref>
@@ Line 53: / Line 46: @@
 The 2004 documentary ''[[Puente Llaguno: Claves de una Masacre]]'' claimed that the Chavistas on the bridge did not begin shooting until 4:38 pm, by which time most of the opposition deaths had already occurred. Nelson responds that such claims are false by showing that opposition demonstrator Jesús Arellano was killed just before 2:30 pm, with photos showing Chavistas further up the street brandishing firearms and closer than purported by the earlier sources.<ref name="PHOTObrian3" />{{self published source|date=January 2022}}
-Within the next 15 minutes, two other opposition demonstrators were shot at 2:45 and 4:30 pm, the Metropolitan Police responded to the Chavista gunfire by going between the marchers and the Chavistas. The Chavistas responded to the Metropolitan Police by moving further up the street and at around 4:35 pm, began firing down from Llaguno Bridge onto Baralt Avenue below. Police responded to the Chavista gunfire, with one Chavista who was lying on the bridge being shot in the face, with his body positioning of lying down and facing the Metropolitan Police below possibly resulting in the headshot. Ricochets were also possible from Chavistas ranks firing through the spokes of the railing on the bridge. After 5:30 pm when most of the gunfire concluded, the filmmakers of ''The Revolution Will Not Be Televised'' used manipulated footage, according to Nelson, in order to show an empty Baralt Avenue that Chavistas were overlooking.<ref name="PHOTObrian3" />{{self published source|date=January 2022}} A vehicle used by the Metropolitan Police later showed that approximately 600 bullets impacted the vehicle's side that was facing north toward the Puente Llaguno bridge.<ref>{{cite news |date=7 April 2013 |title=LOS POLICÍAS SENTENCIADOS |agency=[[El Universal (Caracas)|El Universal]] |url=http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/130407/los-policias-sentenciados |access-date=13 August 2015}}</ref>
-=== Scene cleanup ===
-After 11 April, the Baralt Avenue was closed as a crime scene and remained closed while Carmona was in power. However, upon Chávez's return on 14 April, cleaning crews under the orders of [[Freddy Bernal]], mayor of the [[Libertador Municipality, Caracas|Libertador Municipality]] and leader of the [[Bolivarian Circles]], began to fix the damages in the street. The crews swiftly repaired the traffic lights, restored the kiosks, painted the walls, covered the splinters in the cement surfaces and replaced the damaged street lamps free of charge. Workers removed bullets from the walls and scoured the drains for shell casings as well. Within five days, all physical evidence at the site had been collected and destroyed, and on April 20 the avenue was reopened. The Chávez government proceeded to transfer detectives and prosecutors who opened investigations and replace them with more submissive supporters.<ref name="p16NELSON2">{{cite book |last1=Nelson |first1=Brian A. |title=El Silencio y el escorpion: Crónica del golpe contra Chávez |date=2012 |publisher=Alfa |isbn=978-1568584188 |edition= |location=Caracas |page=288 |language=es}}</ref>
-===Criminal investigation===
-The people filmed shooting from the Puente Llaguno bridge were initially identified as being pro-Chávez political activists Rafael Cabrices, {{ill|Richard Peñalver|es}}, Henry Atencio, and Nicolás Rivera. They were captured by the police and jailed for one year as they awaited trial, but charges were dropped before the trial began. Rafael Cabrices died from a [[myocardial infarction|heart attack]] three years later, in August 2005. Henry Atencio died fifteen years later, in May 2017.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}}
 ==See also==

v t e Presidency of Hugo Chávez
Tenure	Cabinet of Hugo Chávez Plan Bolívar 2000 Vargas tragedy Decree 1011 Tascón List Assassination of Danilo Anderson teleSUR United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) Detention of Maria Lourdes Afiuni PDVAL affair Death of Franklin Brito Yare prison riot 2013 Uribana prison riot Daktari Ranch affair Rodrigo Granda affair 2006 Chávez speech at the United Nations South American Energy Summit ¿Por qué no te callas? 2008 Andean diplomatic crisis Operation Emmanuel Los Maniceros massacre 2010 Colombia–Venezuela diplomatic crisis
Elections	2000 general election 2000 trade union referendum 2004 recall referendum Tascón List 2005 parliamentary election 2006 presidential election 2007 constitutional referendum 2009 constitutional referendum 2010 Venezuelan parliamentary election 2012 presidential election
Domestic policies	Boliburguesía Bolivarianism Bolivarian Circles Bolivarian missions Florentino Guaicaipuro Habitat Identidad Mercal Miranda Piar Ribas Robinson Sucre Vuelta al Campo Vuelvan Caras Zamora Bolivarian Revolution Chavismo Colectivos Economic policy National Center for Foreign Commerce Snitch Law Socialism of the 21st century Venezuelan communal councils
Foreign policy	Bank of the South Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA) Petrocaribe
Opposition	Con mis hijos no te metas Coup attempt of 2002 Plaza Altamira military 2002–2003 general strike Protests 2002 2004 2007 RCTV Referendum