WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) – The U.S. State Department is launching a new campaign to warn Americans not to go to Venezuela. Officials say anyone who does risks kidnapping, imprisonment, and even torture.
Christian Castaneda understands those risks painfully well, because he says his brother Wilbert Joseph Castaneda is currently being wrongfully detained in Venezuela.
It was just before Labor Day weekend of 2024 when Christian says he got a strange late-night call from an international number. When he picked up, it was his brother Wilbert.
“He said Christian I’m in Venezuela. It’s a really really bad situation,” Castaneda said.
He was immediately concerned, but it would take some time to discover just how bad the situation was. It turns out his brother Wilbert had been vacationing in Colombia and then traveled to Venezuela, where the Venezuelan government imprisoned him.
The Venezuelan government accuses Castaneda and other foreign visitors of a plot to assassinate President Nicholas Maduro. Christian says that’s completely untrue.
“They have not provided a single shred of evidence,” Castaneda said.
Wilbert is a U.S. Navy Seal and a father of four. It’s been months since his family has been able to see or talk to him.
Christian shared that they’re very worried for his safety, especially after hearing from former American detainees about how dangerous Venezuela can be.
“Very rough conditions, including torture. And so absolutely very concerned that that could be the case. Not just for my brother, but for other Americans that are there as well,” Castaneda said.
That’s why the U.S. State Department just launched a new campaign to warn Americans not to go to Venezuela for any reason. State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mignon Houston says it’s critically important for them to spread the word.
“No travel is safe right now in Venezuela, absolutely no travel,” Houston said. “We are asking Americans, don’t risk it, don’t take the chance. Not even to travel to the border.”
Right now, the State Department says more U.S. nationals are wrongfully detained in Venezuela than anywhere else in the world. Strained relations between the U.S. and Venezuela mean that the U.S. government has no access to American detainees.
“The stories that we have heard from detained Americans, they’re horrific. The beatings, the torture. This is not a place you want to spend your summer travel. This is not a place you want to go,” Houston said.
The Castaneda family is actively working with hostage advocacy groups, lawmakers, and the Trump administration to get Wilbert back home.
“I hope that he knows that we’re fighting for him. And I know that he does, that his family misses him very much. His kids are looking forward to seeing him again soon,” Castaneda said.
He says he’s hopeful.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that he’ll be reunited with us and with his family soon,” Castaneda said.
“Not a day goes by that we are not thinking about the Americans who are wrongfully detained around the world, and Venezuela is included,” Houston said.
While the State Department works to free all Americans, including Castaneda, they want to make sure others don’t end up imprisoned in Venezuela.
“This is a campaign to ensure that we don’t have another name to add to that list,” Houston said. “There is no trip that is worth the price of your freedom.”
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