Employees at Preciosa Market and Restaurant in Dallas started their Saturday shift unlike any other.
“I see all the workers, they were crying, and hug me and saying, ‘Oh my gosh finally, finally,’ and I’m saying, ‘Yeah, finally, finally!’ and I start crying again,” said Isabela Sandoval, who’s family owns the shop.
Sandoval said she was up watching news of President Nicolás Maduro’s capture on her phone, crying.
President Donald Trump announced the arrest and extradition of Maduro and his wife in an overnight operation Saturday.
According to documents reported by NBC, the Maduros have been indicted in the Southern District of New York with narcoterrorism and other charges.
The move has drawn condemnation from some leaders, including in Russia, the United Kingdom and Mexico. Legal experts have also expressed concern about the strike’s legitimacy.
But all morning and afternoon, Preciosa buzzed with other Venezuelans celebrating the fall of Maduro’s regime– people brought flags and burst out in chants and cheers.
“That’s a dream come true,” Sandoval said.
Sandoval said her mom, and owner of the shop, Laura Boscan, is also overjoyed.
“My mom is really happy because she knows what was the Venezuela from a lot of years ago,” Sandoval said. “Venezuela was a rich country of a lot of cultures, of a lot of food.”
Boscan said she came to the U.S. about six years ago, after getting a degree in petroleum engineering but getting shut out of jobs after not declaring herself a follower of the Maduro regime.
“She wants to see a new era of the country,” Sandoval said, translating for her mom. “She wants to work there and have a salary.”
Boscan’s husband, Jesus Sanchez, came to the U.S. about 10 years ago. He said he was in the Venezuelan military but left to escape persecution from a government he didn’t agree with– Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez.
“[If] you think different, it’s a problem for you and your family,” Sanchez said.
He said under the last two presidents, many Venezuelans suffered.
“No food, no water, no house.” he said. “You don’t have life in Venezuela.”
At Arepa Azteca in Oak Cliff, a group of customers were toasting to what they called the freedom of Venezuela.
“We had faith and hope that this day would come,” one of them said. “It’s a day to celebrate.”
“It’s like a dream,” said another customer.
While many acknowledged that there is some concern about the uncertainty of Venezuela’s future, and who will run it, today, they say, there is a lot of hope.
“She wants the freedoms that we have here in the United States, over there in Venezuela,” said Sandoval, translating for Boscan.
Great Job Tahera Rahman & the Team @ NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth for sharing this story.
