20 years old
Elvis Adonis Montilla Pérez was a veterinary medicine student at the Francisco de Miranda National Experimental University (UNEFM). During university breaks, he would travel to Barinas to stay with relatives. On May 22, 2017, he participated in a peaceful demonstration on Los Llanos Avenue, near the Palma de Oro residential complex in Barinas. When security forces arrived and gunfire broke out, Elvis attempted to take refuge in the nearby residential complex. Before managing to enter, he was shot in the chest and died from his injuries. Witnesses pointed to an alleged shooter who was a member of the Barinas State Police, while other official and international reports documented that he died from a firearm during the violent repression of the protest. The Public Ministry initiated an investigation into the homicide, but according to his family and human rights organizations, the case has remained virtually stagnant since 2017. His mother, María Antonia Pérez Ruiz, has continued trying to access the investigation file and seeking justice for her son; years later, she denounced that she still had not been provided with a copy of the file or given an effective judicial response. More than eight years after his death, no one has been held accountable, and his case remains emblematic of the impunity surrounding the deaths that occurred during the 2017 protests.