(NewsNation) — There is potentially good news for a Michigan couple held for weeks in a maximum-security Mexican prison because of a dispute over a timeshare.
U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett, R-Mich., on Wednesday visited with Paul and Christy Akeo, who have been in custody since they were arrested in Cancún on March 4. A high-end resort company accuses the Spring Arbor couple of fraud, but Barrett and others object to the couple being held in harsh conditions for what arguably is a business or civil dispute.
Barrett said on social media that he’s working to secure their safe release. He said he met for an hour with the Akeos and visited with a judicial official in Quintana Roo, adding, “I hope to have more to share soon.”
A friend of the Akeo family, true-crime podcaster Mallory Wilson, said Barrett has been in touch with the White House about the couple’s plight.
“I can say that I know that Rep. Barrett has been in touch with President Trump,” Wilson told “Banfield” on Wednesday. “To my knowledge, he is aware of what is going on.”
Barrett posted photos of his meeting with 58-year-old Paul and Christy, 60. He said on Twitter that they were in “horrific conditions” — including “rubbled walls, overcrowded cells, toilets that don’t flush, and disgusting food.”
“This has left them scared, frustrated, and struggling to find hope,” Barrett said.
Wilson, the family friend, said the couple looks as if they have lost a lot of weight during their detainment.
“Christy’s lost about 25 pounds since being there, so she is much smaller,” Wilson said. “You can just see the life has kind of been drained from their faces. But I have to imagine that seeing Rep. Barrett today was a good sign and a good feeling for them.”