{"id":180317,"date":"2025-12-15T00:11:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T06:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/confidencial.digital\/sin-categoria\/roberto-samcam-person-of-the-year-2025-killed-but-not-silenced\/"},"modified":"2025-12-20T13:58:46","modified_gmt":"2025-12-20T19:58:46","slug":"roberto-samcam-person-of-the-year-2025-killed-but-not-silenced","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/confidencial.digital\/en\/english\/roberto-samcam-person-of-the-year-2025-killed-but-not-silenced\/","title":{"rendered":"Roberto Samcam, Person of the Year 2025: Killed but Not Silenced"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cThe world of intelligence is pretty fucked up. You can\u2019t bring anyone to your house, you can\u2019t tell anyone where you live (\u2026) because the regime infiltrates, intelligence work is highly effective. You have to protect yourself,\u201d warned retired Nicaraguan Army Major Roberto Samcam, nine months before his assassination, during an interview<\/a> with the program La Mesa Redonda.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n

Samcam repeated this warning several times in other interviews, denouncing the presence of intelligence cells sent from Managua and operating in Costa Rica out of the Nicaraguan embassy in San Jos\u00e9. In 2019, he even reported to the Directorate of Intelligence and Security (DIS)<\/g> that he was being followed. But he decided not to stay silent and continued speaking out. <\/p>\n\n

On June 18, 2025, in his last interview with the program Caf\u00e9 con Voz, he spoke about the country\u2019s future in the event of Daniel Ortega\u2019s death and the dynastic succession by his wife, Rosario Murillo. Less than 24 hours later, he was shot and killed at the door of his home. <\/p>\n\n

Roberto Samcam has been posthumously selected by CONFIDENCIAL\u2019s<\/strong> Editorial Board as Person of the Year 2025, in recognition of his work documenting repression, particularly the Nicaraguan Army\u2019s involvement in the massacre during the 2018 protests. This honor pays tribute to his legacy, which lives on in the demand for justice by Nicaraguans in exile who have been affected by transnational repression.<\/a> <\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n

\"Claudia
Claudia Vargas Medal holds a placard with a photo of her husband, Roberto Samcam, for whom she demands justice following his assassination in San Jos\u00e9, Costa Rica, on June 19, 2025. \/\/ Photo: CONFIDENCIAL <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

Upon receiving the news, his wife Claudia Vargas expressed gratitude for the tribute to a man who dedicated his final years to denouncing the crimes against humanity committed by Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo. For her, the recognition is not just for him: \u201cI accept it on behalf of all the victims of repression, of those killed in Carazo\u2026 and of the people who have chosen to continue this struggle from hiding,\u201d she asserts. <\/p>\n\n

The honor is received by his son, Gabriel Samcam, with a mixture of joy and sadness. \u201cWith great joy because I think it reflects the spirit, the struggle, the character, and the contributions my father made to our fight to bring democracy to Nicaragua. But at the same time, it saddens me that these circumstances had to happen to reach this moment,\u201d he comments. <\/p>\n\n

The Threats Were Always There<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Threats were always present in Samcam\u2019s life. \u201cRoberto, I think that\u2019s why he was overly careful. I never thought something could happen,\u201d confesses Claudia. But Gabriel says he grew up knowing that his father\u2019s life was always at risk. \u201cEven before he had to leave for Costa Rica, we always knew there was danger,\u201d he insists. <\/p>\n\n

He recalls that when his father left the Army and got involved in politics as a candidate for deputy in Carazo, he was attacked with stones during a meeting at the Jinotepe Social Club. <\/p>\n\n

With the start of the 2018 protests, the threats intensified. \u201cMy dad told me and my sister many times that if we heard gunfire or machine-gun bursts, we should drop to the ground,\u201d Gabriel recounts. Many times, they didn\u2019t even sleep at home. That\u2019s why the whole family eventually went into exile. <\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n

\"Roberto
Roberto Samcam\u2019s house in Jinotepe (Carazo) was marked by mobs supporting the ruling Sandinista Front in 2018. \/\/ Photo: Courtesy <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

Samcam received multiple warnings, even directly from the Costa Rican government, alerting him to assassination plans since 2018. The family knew his life was in danger, but the threats were always linked to public places or surveillance. \u201cWe never thought they would come right to his doorstep,\u201d admits Gabriel. <\/p>\n\n

Claudia confirms that she wasn\u2019t worried about him continuing to speak out. \u201cRoberto, besides, even if I worried, he was going to keep doing it. Roberto had his principles and did what he wanted,\u201d she explains. After attacks on other opposition figures, some relatives told him to calm down. And he would respond: \u201cThere is no power in this world, nor anyone who can silence me.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

\u201cThis is serious\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Samcam took many security precautions. Although he never spoke of fear, he was extremely careful. He looked for alternate exits wherever he went and distrusted spaces with only one entrance. A homeless person in front of the house for three months made him uneasy. \u201cHe\u2019s suspicious,\u201d he would tell Claudia. She would joke: \u201cHow can you be <\/em>suspicious of a homeless person? Do you think someone is going to disguise themselves?\u201d <\/p>\n\n

Once, his wife noticed he was \u201cvery nervous\u201d when they went to eat at a restaurant. She told him it would be better to go home and order takeout. <\/p>\n\n

On another occasion, a new neighbor who watched TV at night also unsettled him. He would watch from his window. Claudia tried to lighten the mood with humor: \u201cDo you think he has binoculars and can see you all the way in here, with your curtains closed and everything?\u201d Roberto replied: \u201cThis is serious, Claudia. This is serious.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

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\u201cI\u2019ll Be Here Waiting for You\u201d <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

The last days of Roberto Samcam were marked by family closeness. In December 2024, he had visited his son and other relatives in the United States, and afterward spent time with loved ones in Mexico. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cHe had been with people we love (\u2026) and that also gives me great satisfaction: knowing that in his final moments he was well connected with love and that he took that memory with him,\u201d Claudia notes. <\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n

The last conversation between Claudia and Roberto was ordinary, filled with affection. That morning, he made chilaquiles with a sauce he had learned to prepare in Mexico. <\/p>\n\n

He walked her to the door as he did every day, they shared a kiss, and she said, \u201cSee you later.\u201d He replied, \u201cI\u2019ll be here waiting for you,\u201d Claudia recalls emotionally. <\/p>\n\n

His Military Discipline Never Left Him<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Roberto Samcam hung his clothes with military precision. Each hanger had to be spaced exactly so that the shirts wouldn\u2019t wrinkle. Even then, he ironed his clothes before wearing them. \u201cI used to say to myself: who am I living with, if people only knew,\u201d Claudia remembers with a small smile, recalling her husband\u2019s quirks. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cHe was serious, very responsible, and strict about his things. He had this habit of keeping everything in order, making sure everything was right, making sure everything was super clean,\u201d she mentions.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n

For her, the same rigor he applied to his shirts was the same he applied to documenting power. She would watch him speaking and verifying information. That\u2019s why his books carried meticulous dates, and his documents followed an order that almost resembled a diary. <\/p>\n\n

His participation in the 2018 protests was done by doing what he knew best, Claudia insists. From the very first day, he denounced the war weapons used against protesters, the Army\u2019s participation in repression, and how people were massacred in the streets. <\/p>\n\n

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