Timothy Tracy, the 35-year-old West Hollywood documentary filmmaker arrested in Venezuela and accused of trying to topple the government, was released from prison and expelled from the country Wednesday.
According to reports, Venezuelan government officials filed court papers late Tuesday saying there was insufficient evidence to charge Tracy, who had been accused of instigating the divide that has grown in the country following the April 14 presidential election.
U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, who represents the 28th District, which includes West Hollywood, had previously called the detainment of Tracy “ludicrous,” and had called for his release.
“Mr. Tracy is thankfully on his way back to the United States this morning,” Schiff said in a Wednesday press release. “His arrest and detention should serve as a powerful reminder of the need to guard our press freedoms vigorously at home and abroad.”
While Venezuela’s political opposition claims that fraudulent voting led to the election of current president Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuela government has accused the Obama administration of being behind the country’s troubles in preparation for an invasion.
The Venezuelan government had previously claimed it had video evidence that Tracy was channeling money from non-profit organizations to the “extreme right” opposition to “take us to civil war” and that “there is no doubt that he is from an intelligence agency.”
Tracey previously produced a Discovery Channel program about terrorism and smuggling across the U.S.-Canada border as well as the History Channel series “Madhouse,” about North Carolina race-car drivers.
