Jason Puracal

Jason Puracal is an American citizen who moved to Nicaragua as a Peace Corps Volunteer in 2002. He remained there after completing his service. On November 11, 2010, Nicaraguan police arrested him on false charges of international drug trafficking, money laundering, and organized crime. He was eventually convicted in a flawed trial and sentenced to 22 years in prison. In May 2012, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that his detention was arbitrary and in violation of international law. In September 2012, an appeals court vacated the conviction and he was released.