U.S. Legal Counsel for Zack Shahin Ask For Congressional Assistance

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, March 12, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As Zack Shahin, an American citizen imprisoned in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), nears his second week of a hunger strike, attorneys acting on his behalf have implored Senators and Congressmen to inquire into the State Department's inaction on his behalf.  In particular, the continued silence of U.S. diplomats on the scene is endangering Zack's life.

"It's clear that only the direct, public involvement of the top U.S. diplomats in Dubai and UAE is going to make a difference," said Jim Jatras, Zack's Washington DC-based counsel and a former American diplomat. "While the embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General in Dubai have been diligent in checking on Zack's welfare and securing visits from his family, no steps have been taken to resolve his case. Zack has been imprisoned for almost six years now, with no conviction remaining in effect, just endless 'investigation' and a treadmill of endless administrative hearings."   Most recently, a "Cassation court" in Dubai on spurious reasoning sent the one charge on which Zack had been convicted but later overturned on appeal back to a lower court for further proceedings.

"We need to hear personally from U.S. Ambassador Michael H. Corbin and Dubai Consul General Robert P. Waller.  They need to speak out publicly and tell the UAE and Dubai authorities: enough is enough," added Jatras.  "They need to say, 'You've had him for six years and proved nothing. Either present convincing evidence in a timely, open and honest proceeding, or let him go home to his country and his family.'  That's the only way we've ever seen Dubai take the U.S. seriously," he said, with reference to Zack's 2012 brief release on bail immediately after Charge d'Affaires (and now U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission to U.A.E.) L. Victor Hurtado and then-Consul General Justin Siberell request to that effect.  Zack has received consular visits but no personal contact with high-level U.S. diplomats on the scene for almost two years.

Seeking Congressional assistance, Jatras and Zack's Ohio-based attorney, Eric Akers, have now brought Zack's plight to members of the House and Senate, asking them to press for action from the State Department.  Among those contacted are the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations (both Democratic and Republican sides); the office of Florida Representative Iliana Ros-Lehtinen, who chairs the House Subcommittee on the Middle East; and Ohio Representative Jim Jordan (in whose district Zack's brother Hicham resides) and Texas Representative John Culberson (in whose district Zack's wife, Soha, and the couple's two children live). "We hope they can spur the needed action from the State Department," said Jatras and Akers, who are moving forward with additional outreach.  

"It becomes very frustrating to ask for assistance from the State Department, without effect," noted Akers.  "Whether they are too occupied to respond or too cozy with the relationship with our 'friends' in Dubai, their obligation to protect the rights of an American citizen needs to be pointed out to them.  If Zack's counsel cannot receive an answer, we hope Congress can, and then produce some long overdue action."

"They need to do it quick," added Akers.  "I don't know how long he can hold out.  He hasn't eaten in ten days now, and his strength is failing.  As I wrote to President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry recently, 'Zack Shahin has reached the end of his options and will perish if his government continues to leave him to his fate.' We need help, now."

About Zack Shahin's Plight Since His March 2008 Arrest and Imprisonment:

On March 2, 2014, Zack Shahin declared a hunger strike to protest the U.S. government's unwillingness to intervene on his behalf and demand that Dubai authorities release him after six years in jail without an upheld conviction.

March 23, 2014, will mark the six-year anniversary of Zack Shahin's arrest.  Except for the brief period following his release on bail in July 2012 and return that September, he has remained imprisoned without an upheld conviction.  In early 2013, Zack was acquitted on the first of four criminal cases against him, all of which stem from the same baseless accusations concerning his tenure as CEO of Deyaar, a Dubai-based real estate company.  The prosecutor unsuccessfully appealed this decision and the not-guilty verdict was upheld.  In March 2013, Zack and co-defendants were found guilty of embezzlement and received a 15-year sentence. Zack immediately appealed the conviction and the Dubai Court of Appeals overturned the court's decision.

Despite an appeals court overturning Shahin's guilty verdict and a cassation court upholding another not-guilty verdict, after four years of court appearances and continuances, and an obvious strategic maneuver by the Dubai government to deny U.S. citizen Zack Shahin his due process right to a trial, Washington continues to tread lightly.

For more information on Zack Shahin's arrest, visit www.FreeZack.com.  U.S. legal counsel for Zack Shahin are Eric Akers and James Jatras.

Contact Darren Spinck 202-669-4418 / [email protected]

SOURCE U.S. Legal Counsel for Zack Shahin