In March 2008, Chiquita Brands International, Inc. was sued on behalf of American terror victims in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of the families of five missionaries who were kidnapped and subsequently murdered in two separate incidents by the Colombian terrorist organization Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC).

The suit alleged that Chiquita violated the civil provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act by knowingly providing funds to FARC during the time the missionaries were abducted, held hostage and ultimately murdered. The Anti-Terrorism Act permits American citizens or their heirs and estates to recover damages from those who provide material support to terrorist groups for injuries that they suffered by reason of acts of international terrorism.

Attorneys from Kohn Swift, including Zahra Dean, worked with a team of attorneys from several other firms to develop and prosecute the case. After 10 years of litigation, in February 2018, on the eve of trial, the parties reached a settlement of all the Plaintiffs’ claims under the Anti-Terrorism Act.