Hundreds in Spain demand release of El Salvador priest
3 August 2014 Last updated at 16:28 ET
Hundreds in Spain demand release of El Salvador priest
Hundreds of people in the Spanish town of Daimiel have marched to demand the release of a Roman Catholic priest detained in El Salvador.
Father Antonio Rodriguez, who was born in Daimiel, has been accused of smuggling mobile phones to imprisoned members of El Salvador notorious gangs.
Demonstrators say Father Tono has dedicated much of his life to helping gang members turn away from crime.
El Salvador has one of the highest murder rates in the world.
More than 300 of Father Tono's supporters, including Mayor Leopoldo Sierra, marched through the streets of Daimiel in Spain on Sunday.
Among them was a former Salvadoran gang member, Isamar Orellana, who now lives in Spain.
"I am a living example of how much Father Tono has done to help us get out of that difficult world," Ms Orellana told the EFE news agency.
"He was a wonderful person to me, the father I never had."
More:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-28632879