A pair of Italian tourists travelling across Venezuela published a video on social media Monday claiming they experienced several instances of alleged extortion while passing through various police and military checkpoints in the country.
The Venezuelan newspaper El Nacional reports that the two Italian tourists operate an online YouTube channel known as Come Due Vagabondi (“Like Two Tramps,”) and dedicate themselves to travel around on a van while documenting their journey.
According to El Nacional, the two tourists travelled through several Venezuelan states, such as Zulia, Falcón, Carabobo, and Bolívar. On Monday, they published a video denouncing that they were stopped at numerous checkpoints along various stretches of the journey, an experience that “defined much of their trip.”
“Throughout Central and South America, we’ve used the camera at every checkpoint. Today we’re going to try hiding it and see if the police really aren’t corrupt,” the video’s caption read
In the video, one of the tourists explains that during their first days in Venezuela, “we’ve passed through at least 30 checkpoints, and every time the police saw the camera, it was as if their attitude changed.”
“So, we want to see if they’re really that genuine even when they don’t know they’re being filmed,” the male tourist said. “We’re conducting tests to see if they’re friendly even without a camera pointed at them.”
“We’re testing to see if they’re nice even when there’s no camera on them,” the female tourist prefaced before greeting a Venezuelan official, who after asking where were the two tourists from, asked if they had any “Italian currency” with them.
The pair responded that they “did not” had any money with them.
At another part in the video, another Venezuelan official is heard saying for a “help” for the “friends” to buy things in the market. In a third example, a guard is heard asking for a “cookie” or “one or two” Brazilian reais.
In all instances, the tourists responded that they did not had any cash with them to give before being allowed to continue with their trip. According to the Venezuelan outlet La Patilla, the officials belonged to the Bolivarian National Police (PNB), the Bolivarian National Guard (GNB), or various state and municipal police forces.
“It’s absurd, but they say it with a smile, you know? You know, a coin, a real, they actually thought we had Brazilian money, the Brazilian currency,” the woman recounts at the end of the video.
For years, Venezuelan non-government organizations and international outlets have denounced the pervasive extortion in Venezuelan checkpoints by police officers, National Guard members, military personnel, and other officials.
On Monday, the Colombian newspaper La Opinión published a report recounting testimonies from Venezuelans who denounced that officials have demanded U.S. dollars or valuable items to be granted passage through the nation’s roads.
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