A former U.S. Marine and a Florida man who were imprisoned in Venezuela have sued President Nicolás Maduro for allegedly heading a vast “criminal enterprise” that uses American citizens as bargaining chips in negotiations with the U.S. The complaint filed Monday in Miami federal court by Matthew Heath and Osman Khan is similar to a slew of lawsuits that have resulted in major judgments for Americans imprisoned in Venezuela.

Senior Biden administration officials have quietly traveled to Caracas in the latest bid to rebuild relations with the South American oil giant as the war in Ukraine drags on, driving higher gas prices and forcing the U.S. to recalibrate other foreign policy objectives.

In this undated photo courtesy of the Heath family, Matthew Heath is seen at his mother's home in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Heath family via AP)MEDELLIN – “Don’t WORRY!,” reads the cryptic note scribbled on a scrap of perforated paper smuggled out of a dank, basement cellblock. Now, for the first time, Heath’s family in Knoxville, Tennessee is breaking its silence. Like Heath's family, he believes the American innocently entered Venezuela in the hopes of catching up with his boat. Heath’s family doesn’t know what led him to cross into Venezuela.