Three Americans were quietly jailed in Venezuela earlier this year for allegedly trying to enter the country illegally and now face long prison sentences in the politically turbulent nation. Two of the men — a lawyer from California and a computer programmer from Texas — were arrested in late March, just days after President Nicolás Maduro’s socialist government freed two other Americans. Venezuelan security forces arrested lawyer Eyvin Hernandez, 44, and computer programmer Jerrel Kenemore, 52, in separate incidents in the western state of Tachira, according to a person familiar with investigations into the arrests. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the cases publicly. Hernandez is from Los Angeles; Kenemore is from the Dallas area, but had lived in Colombia since 2019. A third American was arrested in January, also for allegedly entering the country illegally along its lengthy border with Colombia. AP is withholding his name at the request of his family, which fears retaliation. At least eight more Americans — including five oil executives and three veterans — remain imprisoned in Venezuela, and U.S. officials insist they are being used as political bargaining chips. The latest arrests come amid efforts by the Biden administration to unwind the Trump-era policy of punishing Maduro for what they consider his trampling on Venezuela’s democracy. Instead, Biden officials are trying to lure him back into negotiations with the U.S.-backed opposition to pave the way for free and fair elections. As part of that still-early outreach, the U.S. has dangled the possibility of easing sanctions on the OPEC nation — a move that, over time, could also help lower oil prices, which spiked following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The release of two Americans on March 8 was celebrated in Washington, giving a boost to the Biden administration’s outreach to Maduro. It’s not clear what impact, if any, the jailing of three more Americans will have on relations with Maduro, a close ally of Russia whom the U.S. has sanctioned and indicted on narcotics charges. The State Department confirmed the three arrests and a spokesperon said officials are advocating for the immediate release of all wrongfully detained Americans in Venezuela. Beyond any political fallout, the arrests point to what U.S. officials consider an alarming trend: the arrest of unsuspecting Americans along the Colombia-Venezuela border, a lawless area dominated by criminal gangs and leftist rebels. Americans trying to enter Venezuela without a visa are especially vulnerable. Despite Maduro’s often fiery rhetoric against the U.S. “empire,” there’s no indication he is targeting Americans for arrest. But with the South American country torn apart after years of political unrest, hyperinflation and devastating food shortages, Maduro’s grip on his poorly paid security forces is constrained. That’s created an opening for criminal elements and hardliners looking to spoil Maduro’s talks with the U.S. “There’s a lot of different centers of power in Venezuela and not all of them are aligned with Maduro or share his goal of seeing talks with the U.S. advance,” said Phil Gunson, a Caracas-based analyst for the International Crisis Group. In one arrest report seen by the AP, Venezuelan military counterintelligence agents justified their actions by citing the U.S.’s “constant threats, economic blockade, and breaking of diplomatic relations.” Some top Venezuelan officials also justify […]

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