Vacationing U.S. citizen detained for months in Venezuela has Georgia ties

Sophie Hunter, Lucas’ younger sister, was the first to find out he had run into trouble. On Jan. 7, she received a voice message from him saying he had been “caught by the Venezuelans” and that he was being questioned by that country’s law enforcement agents.

“His first words were, ‘Do not freak out,’” said Sophie, who has previously resided in Union County. “But for me that was a signal that there was a big problem, and it was going to be very scary.”

Sophie Hunter spoke with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution from Washington, D.C., where she has been trying to rally lawmakers, including members of Georgia’s congressional delegation, to push for her brother’s release.

On March 7, the U.S. Department of State announced that there are nine Americans now wrongfully detained in Venezuela. Although they weren’t named, Sophie said the agency confirmed to her that Lucas is among them.

“They said: ‘President (Donald) Trump and Secretary of State (Marco) Rubio designated your brother as a wrongful detainee.’ When I heard those words, I really felt, ‘Wow.’ They said that he’s a top presidential priority,” she said.

That official designation means Hunter’s case will be handled by the office of the U.S. Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, and gives the federal government more tools to attempt to negotiate his release. It also makes available resources for family members like Sophie, who previously had been relying on staffers at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota for help.

“I really tried to shoot arrows in whatever direction I could think of” for help, Sophie said.

A pattern of hostage-taking

Because Sophie was supposed to travel with Lucas to Colombia — an illness ultimately sidelined her — she received frequent updates of his time in the South American country. The region Lucas was visiting is remote, and he rented a motorcycle to get to the various kitesurfing spots on his itinerary. Cell service was spotty.

On Jan. 7, Lucas inadvertently rode close to the border with Venezuela, near the Colombian town of Paraguachón, according to his sister. When he spotted a checkpoint and realized where he was, he attempted to turn around, he told Sophie. But by then, it was too late. Venezuelan border agents stepped across the border, grabbed Lucas, and took him to their investigation facilities, he reported in a voice message to his sister.

The following day, he sent another message.

“I am still in the same place. There is immigration police involved … They did a report with all the details, where it is written that I had no intent to enter the country,” he said. “So, now I’m waiting for the authorization to leave.”

That was the last time Sophie heard from her brother.

Credit: Courtesy of Hunter family

Credit: Courtesy of Hunter family

Analysts say Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro has been stockpiling foreign detainees, likely to use as bargaining chips since he claimed victory in a presidential election last year in which there is credible evidence that he lost. Throughout his time in office, Maduro has targeted citizens of countries with adversarial relations, including the U.S. Most detainees are held on allegations of espionage or terrorism.

Sophie says she suspects Lucas, who doesn’t speak Spanish, was snatched because Venezuelan agents likely perceived him to be a foreigner. He was carrying his U.S. passport on him, she said.

The State Department advises U.S. citizens to avoid traveling to the border of Colombia and Venezuela, citing risks of detention.

“The Colombia-Venezuela border is not clearly marked, and U.S. citizens should not go near the border because of the risk of crossing into Venezuela accidentally,” an agency travel advisory warns. “U.S. citizens attempting to enter Venezuela without a visa have been charged with terrorism and other serious crimes and detained for long periods.”

In a statement, an agency spokesperson said that “it is unacceptable that the regime has arrested and jailed Americans under questionable circumstances and without respect for their rights.

“All Americans unjustly detained by the Maduro regime must be released immediately.”

Trump’s return to the White House has brought some changes in the long, tumultuous relationship with Venezuela. In a big win for the president’s deportation agenda, Venezuela has begun accepting some flights returning immigrants removed from the U.S.

Except for a brief period in October 2023 during the Joe Biden administration, deportation flights to Venezuela had ceased for years. That diplomatic impasse proved especially challenging post-pandemic, when Venezuelans began accounting for many of the migrants crossing the southern border illegally.

The deportation flights appear to have survived a Trump administration decision in late February to revoke the license that allowed Chevron to export Venezuelan oil to the U.S. and other international markets, scuttling an important financial lifeline for the country.

In another win, the administration secured in January the release of six U.S. citizens who had been detained in Venezuela. Multiple prisoner swaps were also negotiated under Biden, resulting in the freedom of some Americans who had been wrongfully held by the Maduro regime for years.

Sophie said she was disappointed when she realized her brother wasn’t among the group of six who were freed in January. But it also gave her hope.

“If nobody had come back, I would have been more disappointed,” she said.