Murder Attempt in Spain on Ex Nicaraguan Political Prisoner
Kevin Solís denounces the crime, suspect arrested
Former Nicaraguan political prisoner Kevin Solís has reported being the victim of an attack in Spain, where he has lived as a refugee since 2024.
HAVANA TIMES – The tentacles of Daniel Ortega’s regime’s repression appear to have reached Europe. Former political prisoner Kevin Solís, 26, reported being the target of an attempted attack in Spain, where he has been living in exile since 2024, after fleeing political violence in Nicaragua.
According to his account, the incident occurred on Saturday, November 1, near his residence.
“The man was about to shoot when a third person shouted,” Solís told La Prensa. The young man said that an individual, just a few meters from his home, pointed a firearm at him. In addition to the weapon, the man was holding a mobile phone showing a photo of Solís.
“I have no doubt he’s an emissary of Daniel Ortega’s dictatorship. It’s more than obvious,” said Solís, who was among the 222 political prisoners exiled to the United States in February 2023 and later stripped of his Nicaraguan citizenship.
Spanish authorities confirmed the suspect’s arrest, and the case is under judicial investigation. Human rights organizations have begun documenting the incident as the first case of transnational persecution by the Sandinista regime on Spanish soil.
The attack reported by Solís adds to a series of aggressions against Nicaraguan dissidents in exile. Over the past two years, international organizations such as Human Rights Watch and the Human Rights Collective Nicaragua Nunca Más have warned about a network of transnational persecution extending across Central America, the United States, and Europe, targeting activists, journalists, and opposition figures.
Among the most emblematic cases of this transnational repression are the killings of retired Army Major Roberto Samcam in Costa Rica and Rodolfo Rojas Cordero in Honduras, as well as the armed attack that left activists Nadia Robleto and Joao Maldonado wounded in San Jose, Costa Rica. All these incidents are considered by human rights groups to be coordinated actions by Nicaraguan cells abroad, sent by the dictators Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo.
Solís’s case unfolds amid growing vulnerability for Nicaraguan exiles in Costa Rica, many of whom report harassment, threats, and surveillance.
Facing deteriorating security conditions, dozens of exiles have chosen to take part in the Safe Mobility program to Spain, promoted by international organizations and the Spanish government, in order to obtain refuge and stability beyond the reach of Managua’s repressive apparatus. It now seems that nowhere is truly safe.
First published in Spanish by 100% Noticias and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.