Israeli family detained, accused of spying by Nicaraguan customs

The travel blogger warned other Israelis about traveling to Nicaragua amid rising anti-Israel sentiment.

By World Israel News Staff

An Israeli travel blogger was detained in Nicaragua after being harassed by border officials who accused him of being an IDF soldier and a spy.

Alexander Lapshin, who holds both Israeli and Russian citizenship, was traveling through Central America with his wife and daughter in recent weeks.

But what was meant to be a routine border crossing from Honduras to Nicaragua quickly spiraled into a politically charged confrontation.

“My wife, our 10-year-old daughter and I crossed the border on foot, where our passports were checked by Nicaraguan border officials. Our passports immediately drew unwanted attention — they made a phone call and then photographed our documents,” Lapshin told Hebrew-language media outlet Mako.

Lapshin described an impromptu interrogation, as officials asked “numerous questions about why we were traveling to Nicaragua, what I do for a living in Israel, and whether I had served in the IDF.”

While questioning Lapshin and his family, the border agents viewed his Facebook account.

“I’ve shared a lot of posts supporting Israel in its war with Iran, and they noticed that,” Lapshin said. “They told me they suspected I was ‘collaborating with Israel’s secret services.'”

After being detained at the border for nearly three hours, a senior Nicaraguan official confiscated the family’s passports and said they would be taken to another location to determine their “true identities.”

Lapshin then snatched his family’s passports and ran back to the Honduran side of the border with his wife and daughter, leaving their backpacks behind.

Nicaraguan border officials initially chased the family but gave up after they reached the Honduran checkpoint.

Honduran customs agents allowed the family to reenter the country. From there, the Lapshins continued on to Costa Rica.

“I immediately reported the incident to the Israeli embassy” in Honduras, Lapshin said.

“It’s important to inform other tourists about what happened to us so that something similar doesn’t happen to other Israelis who are arrested there and [could] become hostages [of the Nicaraguan government].”

Lapshin told Mako he was unaware that Israel’s Foreign Ministry recently issued a travel warning for Nicaragua due to the country’s harsh anti-Israel policies.

There is no Israeli embassy in Nicaragua, and Israelis in the country are served by the consulate in neighboring Costa Rica.