US service member detained in Venezuela, officials say

By Stefano Pozzebon, Natasha Bertrand and Haley Britzky, CNN

(CNN) — A US service member has been detained in Venezuela, according to four US officials familiar with the matter.

The service member, a US Navy sailor, is a US citizen and was detained on August 30 in Caracas, according to the officials. One of the officials said he is being held by the Venezuelan intelligence agency SEBIN.

A defense official told CNN, “we are aware of reports that a US Navy Sailor was detained on or about August 30, 2024, by Venezuelan law enforcement authorities while on personal travel to Venezuela. The US Navy is looking into this and working closely with the State Department. We refer you to the State Department for additional questions.”

Another official said the service member was not on official travel or approved leave when he traveled to the country. It is not clear why he traveled there.

“We are aware of reports of the detention of an individual in Venezuela,” a State Department spokesperson said.

“We have no further information to share at this time,” the spokesperson said.

The White House said Wednesday that they are “in touch” with Venezuelan authorities to get more information about the situation, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.

“We’re obviously in touch, as appropriate as you think we would be with Venezuela authorities to try to get more knowledge and information about this,” Kirby said in Wednesday’s White House press briefing.

The State Department advises Americans against traveling to Venezuela, warning that “there is a high risk of wrongful detention of U.S. nationals.”

“Security forces have detained U.S. citizens for up to five years,” the travel advisory for Venezuela says. “The U.S. government is not generally notified of the detention of U.S. citizens in Venezuela or granted access to U.S. citizen prisoners there.”

CNN has asked the Venezuelan government for comment.

The detention of a US citizen comes during a period of serious unrest within Venezuela, after opposition and multiple Latin American leaders refused to recognize the reelection of the country’s authoritarian leader, Nicolas Maduro, in July. Protests erupted in Venezuela over the election, which reportedly killed at least 11 people and resulted in the detention of hundreds of others.

Just this week, the US seized Maduro’s airplane in the Dominican Republic. CNN first reported the seizure, which was a significant development in an already tense relationship between the US and Venezuela. One US official told CNN the seizure “sends a message all the way to the top.”

“Seizing the foreign head of state’s plane is unheard-of for criminal matters. We’re sending a clear message here that no one is above the law, no one is above the reach of US sanctions,” the official said.

The latest detention of a US service member comes roughly two years after nine Americans — including the “Citgo 6” — were brought home from Venezuela by the Biden administration in 2022. after five years of detention in the country. In December 2023, the US secured the release of six wrongfully detained Americans and four other Americans held in Venezuela.

CNN’s Jennifer Hansler and Samantha Waldenberg contributed reporting.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

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