MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – An American who spent nine months in a United Arab Emirates prison for his role in an online parody video is seeking a pardon and financial compensation.
Shezanne Cassim, 30, of Woodbury, told The Associated Press on Thursday that he has faced difficulty getting a job in the United States because he now has a criminal record.
“I have to explain to them (prospective employers) I was in prison for violating the country’s (UAE) national security,” said Cassim, a 2006 graduate of the University of Minnesota. He said he had hoped for a consulting career in aviation in the UAE where he grew up.
In a March 9 letter to Emirati President Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Cassim – a U.S. citizen – said his time in prison in Abu Dhabi destroyed his career and nearly bankrupted his family as they fought to secure his release.
“My imprisonment caused significant financial and emotional hardship, and we all felt betrayed by the country in which my siblings and I grew up and for whose growth my parents gave decades of their lives,” Cassim’s letter read.