When Eric Arthur called his yacht Tambo after the Terminator and Rambo, he did not expect his life to become a survival film.
The American retired person went from the life of a carefree life on his 48ft catamaran to chained in a Venezuelan prison for weeks after fleeing his affected boat.
Arthur, 62, sold his condom and lubricant company in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and left his life behind, bought the yacht in Greece.
After having sailed around the Mediterranean Sea for four years, the experienced Bootman began to explore the Atlantic to explore the Caribbean.
He celebrated New Year's Eve in Barbados and then went south for the picturesque beaches of Venezuela – that is when a disaster struck.
Arthur did not even see the beach before he was on board the Venezuelan coast guard and his ship searched for drugs for hours.
They told him to return and leave the waters of the country, but after a long day he fell asleep behind the wheel and his catamaran ran to the ground on January 6 around 11.30 pm.
At least he was well prepared for that, left the ship to a life's magazine with a radio and supplies while the boat dropped and drove three days until fishermen save him.
Eric Arthur, 62, (bottom right) with five other Americans after they were freed from a Venezuelan prison
Arthur thought he was saved, but his test started. He was brought to a remote military basis and was allowed to sleep and have breakfast.
But then they wanted him to read a statement to video in which the Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro was thanked for saving him. He refused.
“They wanted to do propaganda. They wanted me to say how great the president was, “he told The Wall Street Journal.
He was then taken to Margarita Island and held under virtual house arrest at the house of the local military commander.
'I have been under Coast Guard Watch, house arrest. Do you want to make sure that I can leave my own free will, “he wrote to friends via WhatsApp.
Although he was told that he would be liberated, the opposite happened quickly – he was thrown into the prison in the capital Caracas and removed from the world without a charge.
Arthur said he was forced to sit in a chair at 14 hours a day, chained and not allowed, and fed through intravenous liquids.
Loud music shot 24 hours a day and fierce lights made almost impossible, together with frequent interrogations that accused him of a spy.
“They just tried to wear out so that you agree that when they interviewed you, you would agree with what they say,” he said.
Arthur was imprisoned with 11 other Americans who were arrested between September and January, and if they were even formally charged, they were falsely accused of terrorism, espionage or plans to kill Maduro
Six of them, including Arthur, were admitted to a deal to bring them home and arrived at Andrews Air Force Base on January 31
Arthur was imprisoned with 11 other Americans who were arrested between September and January, and if they were even formally charged, they were falsely accused of terrorism, espionage or plans to kill Maduro.
In reality, many of them came to meet women they met on dating sites.
In essence, they were hostages in the midst of the US government's efforts to expel Maduro, who stable the 2019 elections and rules with an iron fist.
Former President Joe Biden On January 10, a premium on Maduro's head to $ 25 million for information that led to his arrest.
Donald Trump was looking for the competition 11 days later, because Maduro became an important piece in his massive deportation plans.
The vast majority of the millions of asylum seekers who have arrived in the US in recent years were Venezuelans who fled the violence, poverty and the oppression of Maduro's rule.
Maduro refused to take back one of those completed and deported, unless he got something in return.
So Trump Special Envoy Richard Grenell sent from the White House to Caracas to send a deal to return migrants, in exchange for reduced pressure on his regime.
Included in the deal was the release of six of the Americans behind bars.
White House Special Envoy Richard Grenell (Left) was sent to Caracas to close a deal with the Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro (right)
Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States arrive at Simon Bolivar International Airport in Maiqetia, Venezuela, Monday 10 February 2025
Arthur was originally not among them, because he was not yet sued by Venezuela, not even recognized as a prisoner.
But at the last minute, two of the Americans who were planned for release to leave their cells refused, in the conviction that it was again a fake release that the guards used as psychological torture.
Instead, Arthur and another American were abruptly taken out of their cells and driven to a runway. “I thought they would kill me,” he said.
But minutes later, Grenell met them, together with the four others, and soon they were in a plane to the US to eat chicken cordon bleu and mashed potatoes.
They were dropped off at the Hilton Hotel in Arlington, Virginia, for the night before they finally went home.
Shocking, they were forced to sign agreements to pay for the hotel stay and were not referred to by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as 'wrongly detained' – so that they do not have access to the usual medical treatment and counseling for hostages.
Arthur is now trying to put together his life and is not sure of his next move – perhaps with his father Thel, 87, in Los Angeles.
“I'm broke now. I have to start completely. It was a terrible experience, but I have to say that I feel blessed. I can't believe it. I could still be there, “said Arthur.
