A 28-year-old Staten Island man is being held in a detention center run by Venezuela’s military counterintelligence in the capital city of Caracas.
James Luckey-Lange was detained by security forces while meeting local musicians shortly after crossing into southern Venezuela from Brazil, a source familiar with the matter told The New York Times.
The news of Luckey-Lange’s whereabouts came just two days after U.S. armed forces seized and extracted Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, on federal drug trafficking charges.
Maduro, who calls himself the president of Venezuela, is not recognized by the U.S. as the country’s legitimate head of state.
According to The Associated Press, the indictment accuses Maduro and others of working with drug cartels to facilitate the shipment of thousands of tons of cocaine into the U.S. If convicted, Maduro could face life in prison.
Prior to the operation, Luckey-Lange was reportedly among a handful of Americans recently detained by Venezuelan forces.
Although some of the detainees face legitimate criminal charges, Luckey-Lange is one of two detainees that the U.S. government was considering designating as wrongfully detained, a U.S. official familiar with the matter told the Times.
Among the arrested are three Venezuelan American dual passport holders and two American citizens with no known ties to the country.
Years of travel
Luckey-Lange is the son of musician Diane Luckey, who went by the stage name Q Lazzarus. Luckey was particularly known for her 1988 hit song “Goodbye Horses,” an iconic tune featured in the Oscar-winning film “The Silence of the Lambs.” Later in life, she worked as a Staten Island bus driver. Luckey died in 2022 at the age of 60.
James Luckey-Lange, 28, a Staten Island resident, was last heard from in December 2025.(Photo courtesy of Eva Aridjis-Fuentes)
It was in the wake of his mother’s death that Luckey-Lange traveled down to South America out of interest.
“He wanted to see the countryside and explore,” Abbie Luckey, Diane’s sister, told the Advance/SILive.com. “His mother, when he was a kid, had told him stories of how she loved Honduras when she went and so he decided to go and see what she was actually talking about.”
Luckey-Lange is not a citizen of any country in South America and the family does not have roots in Honduras, according to his 74-year-old aunt.
Last year, during Luckey-Lange’s trip, his father died.
Last communication
While on this multi-year journey, Luckey-Lange hopped between several countries but still continued to keep in contact with his aunt. Every Sunday he would make sure to give her a call.
Abbie, a New Jersey resident, last spoke to her nephew on Dec. 8, 2025.
“And he had told me that he was preparing to come home,” said Abbie. “He was going into Caracas to get a flight out.”
James Luckey-Lange, 28, a Staten Island resident is reportedly being detained in Venezuela.(Photo courtesy of Eva Aridjis-Fuentes)
As reported by the New York Times, it is unclear if Luckey-Lange had a visa to enter Venezuela.
The plan was for Luckey-Lange to join the remainder of the family for a cruise right before Christmas. The trip is an annual tradition for the family and a way for them to honor Abbie’s mother, as well as Diane, whose birthday is in December.
“After we returned from the cruise we were all in shock because we knew something had happened to James,” Abbie explained. “Either he had injured himself while he was in the Amazon [jungle] or he was detained, so we started really getting worried.”
As of Tuesday, U.S. officials have yet to contact Abbie on the status of Luckey-Lange’s detainment.
It was actually a New York Times reporter who informed Abbie of the possibility that her nephew was being held in Venezuela.
“It’s very concerning to me because we don’t know who is going to take over the regime or take over the power there and what his thoughts are on American citizens,” Abbie told the Advance/SILive.com following the capture of Maduro. “So it’s very concerning, it’s really up in the air, we don’t know.”
“I want them [U.S. officials] to at least acknowledge that he’s there, let us know that they know that he is there and how are they proceeding in getting him home. And also, if he’s safe, where he is,” she added.
The Advance/SILive.com reached out to Rep. Nicole Malliotakis’s office and the congresswoman explained that she has contacted the U.S. Department of State.
“While we have not been contacted by the family of James Luckey-Lange we learned about the situation from the media on Friday and immediately contacted the U.S. Department of State,” Malliotakis, a Republican who represents Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn, said. “For months, the State Department has advised American citizens not to travel to Venezuela, determining a very high risk of wrongful detention of U.S. nationals in the country. While we have not yet been able to confirm he has been detained, we are engaged, actively monitoring the situation, and have elevated our concern to the White House. It is our hope that our constituent will soon safely return to the United States.”