U.S. Man Marks Five Years in Cuban Prison: Paid 'Terrible Price'

U.S. Man Marks Five Years in Cuban Prison: Paid 'Terrible Price'
BY MIRANDA LEITSINGER

A Maryland contractor on Wednesday marked five years of imprisonment in
Cuba, and his wife urged authorities to release him, saying he "has paid
a terrible price" and was "literally wasting away" in confinement.

Alan Gross, 65, was arrested in Havana in 2009 and sentenced to 15 years
for allegedly bringing communications equipment into the communist-run
country while working as a subcontractor for the U.S. Agency for
International Development. Cuba's President Raul Castro called him a
spy, and Cuban officials said Gross was contracted to work for American
intelligence services — a charge denied by Gross and the U.S. government.

Diplomatic overtures and family appeals have failed to secure the
release of Gross, whose wife, Judy, said he had difficulty walking, had
lost more than 100 pounds during his imprisonment and was now mostly
blind in his right eye. Gross' family said he was bringing expanded
Internet access to Cuba's small Jewish community when he was detained.

"Enough is enough," Judy Gross said in a statement. "My husband has paid
a terrible price for serving his country and community. Alan is resolved
that he will not endure another year imprisoned in Cuba, and I am afraid
that we are at the end. After five years of literally wasting away, Alan
is done. It is time for President Obama to bring Alan back to the United
States now; otherwise it will be too late."

Gross earlier this year said goodbye to his wife and daughter. He has
also refused most other visitors though he did meet earlier in November
with two U.S. Senators.

The State Department called for the immediate release of Gross, calling
his detention "unjustified imprisonment in difficult conditions."

"It is gravely disappointing, especially in light of its professed goal
of providing Cubans with internet access, that the Cuban government has
not allowed Mr. Gross to return to his family, where he belongs," Marie
Harf, deputy spokeswoman, said in a statement.

Source: U.S. Man Marks Five Years in Cuban Prison: Paid 'Terrible Price'
- NBC News.com -
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