Lucas Hunter, finally home. Photo: Hunter Family
A kitesurfer with dual French-American citizenship was released from 192 days of detention in Venezuela as part of a massive prisoner swap with the United States. Lucas Hunter, 37, was among 10 Americans released from captivity in Venezuela in exchange for 252 Venezuelans that the U.S. had deported to prisons in El Salvador.
Hunter, who worked in finance in London, was detained on January 7, 2025, near the Colombia-Venezuela border while exploring the Caribbean coast on a motorbike. According to his family, he was on a kitesurfing trip in Colombia when he passed through the northern town of Paraguachón and realized the road was leading him to the Venezuelan border. As he tried to turn around, Venezuelan border guards reportedly crossed into Colombia and detained him, an account his family says is corroborated by Venezuelan government reports.
Hunter sent messages to his sister, who was also on the trip but did not join him on January 7 because she had fallen ill. At 1:30 p.m. on January 7, Hunter sent a voice note to his sister informing her that he had been detained by Venezuelan officials. “Four hours have passed since I have been here,” he said. “I think they want to let me go, but I have the police, the military that are asking me lots of questions, and I think I’ll get to the end of things.”
The following morning at 9:00 a.m., he sent a second voice note.
“I am still in the same place,” he said. “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, and when I saw the border, I reversed, but the military people told me to come forward. Some people are telling me I will be questioned for three days. I assume it is in Caracas. Others say that we’ll see later today. So now I’m waiting for the authorization to leave.”
Lucas wasn’t heard from again until his release on July 18.
According to an article written by Lucas’ sister, Lucas previously worked as a surfing instructor in Australia, New Zealand, and Oahu. He is an avid kitesurfer and a huge fan of Point Break and surf legend Robbie Naish. He had been sending his sister updates during his surf sessions in Colombia.
His family wrote on an Instagram page that was created to provide updates on his situation.
“Thank you for signing up to support Lucas and our family,” the latest post on the account reads. “Thank you for helping us tell Lucas’ story by rewarding the journalists who covered it and amplifying it on social media to guarantee it reached the right people in Washington. With your support, we were able to do everything in our power to make Lucas’s freedom a national priority, and it worked. Lucas has a long recovery ahead of him – our entire family does. But we wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. We’re so grateful to have our Lucas back.”
