Jason Puracal News Articles

Jason Puracal Marks One Year Held Captive in a Nicaraguan Prison

SEATTLE, Nov 09, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Friday, November 11, 2011, marks the one year anniversary of American Jason Puracal's imprisonment in Nicaragua.

According to attorney Anna Tolin of the Tolin Law Firm, "Jason has endured filth, disease, and on-going violations of his human rights." Adding, and "Despite a complete lack of evidence against him, Puracal was sentenced to 22 years on charges of drug trafficking, money laundering, and organized crime."

Jason's sisters, Janis and Jaime Puracal, have traveled to Nicaragua to remind Jason that his family, friends, and supporters have not given up in their tireless fight for his release.

Awareness of Jason's case continues to spread. A powerful video chronicling Jason's plight is now available at www.freejasonp.com and on YouTube. Sarah Shourd, Josh Fattal, and Shane Bauer, the American hikers recently freed from prison in Iran, also urge fellow Americans to support Jason's release: http://youtu.be/kDwTZm6fpro

In addition, the "Friends of Amanda Knox" website has officially chosen their next case focus to be that of Jason Puracal: http://www.friendsofamanda.org/

Says Jason's sister, Janis, "Jason has become a political prisoner of the socialist Sandinista regime."

Regarding the recent election in Nicaragua, the L.A. Times quotes Sergio Ramirez, former vice President during Daniel Ortega's first term as President, saying, "This [election] is about a Nicaragua where democracy is in danger of dying."

Jason's sister, Janis, elaborates, "Ortega succeeded in stacking courts and electoral bodies, ruling terms limits unconstitutional, and now my brother -- an American - has become a pawn in his grand scheme against his opposition." Adding, "The Nicaraguan constitution is under attack and incapable of preventing fraud and corruption, as seen by the recent elections. It is easy to understand how an innocent person could be wrongfully held and charged with bogus allegations to benefit what has become a ruling dictatorship."

Puracal had been living in the coastal community of San Juan del Sur with his wife, Scarleth Flores Puracal, a Nicaraguan citizen, and their four-year-old son, Jabu, born with Down Syndrome. He ran a successful RE/MAX Realty brokerage with three other American partners and starred on the HGTV series "House Hunters International."

To learn how to help FREE JASON PURACAL, see video and more, visit www.FreeJasonP.com.