Venezuela Begins Gradual Release Of Imprisoned Americans Post-Maduro

After US forces on January 3rd helicoptered into Caracas as Navy warships and aircraft bombed Venezuelan territory, and seemingly effortlessly nabbed President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, one wonders what took so long?

“The Venezuela government has started releasing prisoners with US citizenship, people with knowledge of the situation said,” Bloomberg reports Tuesday evening. “The authorities on Tuesday released at least one US citizen who already left the country, the people said, declining to identify the individual for security reasons.”

There is a planned for gradual release of American prisoners, of which there are not believed to be many. 

Just ahead of the Trump-ordered military strikes and brief invasion, various reports indicated at least 5 Americans were being held, including a New York man who only recently went missing after entering Venezuela (it’s not known whether he had a visa or not). 

As The NY Post detailed:

At least five Americans, including a New Yorker, are being detained in Venezuela following the Trump administration’s latest military and economic pressure campaign against Caracas, according to a new report.

James Luckey-Lange, 28, of Staten Island, is among the recently US citizens imprisoned in Venezuela, with the New Yorker deemed to be wrongfully detained, officials told the New York Times.

Luckey-Lange, whose family reported him missing earlier this month, disappeared soon after entering Venezuela’s border as part of a long trip across Latin America that was inspired by the death of his mother, musician Diane Luckey.

The latest reports after Maduro’s ouster indicate he’s still in the custody of the country’s federal police, and that the new administration of acting President Delcy Rodríguez has not released him. Lucky-Lange’s family is pleading for his release, and has appealed to both Trump and the Rodríguez government.

Trump has controversially praised the Rodríguez government, saying last week in a Fox interview: “they’ve been great. … Everything we’ve wanted, they’ve given us.”

However, Americans deemed wrongfully detained are still apparently in custody. Last week some 100 political prisoners of Venezuelan as well as foreign nationalities were let go.

Venezuelan National Assembly President (and Delcy Rodriguez’s brother) announces Caracas will release a “significant amount” of political prisoners. Advocates estimate there are between 720 and 900 being held unjustly — at least five of them American.pic.twitter.com/8tSe2k0K3H

— Caitlin Doornbos (@CaitlinDoornbos) January 8, 2026

“Venezuela released a number of imprisoned high-profile opposition figures, activists and journalists — both citizens and foreigners — Thursday in what the government described as a gesture to ‘seek peace’ less than a week after former President Nicolás Maduro was captured by U.S. forces to face drug-trafficking charges,” The Associated Press indicated.