Onsy's Story
My uncle, Onsy, is serving a five year prison sentence, convicted in criminal court of a crime we absolutely know he never committed, and faces deportation back to Egypt upon his release in September 2007, where he will be jailed and tortured for: a) Filing for religious asylum with the US (making him an enemy of the Egyptian government) and b) for deserting the Egyptian army (because as a Coptic Orthodox Christian he was being forced to covert to Islam. When he refused, he was jailed and tortured and abused.) We maintain that Onsy is innocent, and that the allegations against him – despite a court conviction – are fabricated by my father and sister (the alleged victim), and were created by the two of them to force him to leave the US after Onsy and his brother “Jack” (not his real name) became severely estranged. Onsy waited for over three years for his trial and was looking forward to clearing his name so he can pursuer other options with immigration. Onsy was convicted not because the jury found no reasonable doubt, but because the jury in Onsy’s trial was prejudiced against Onsy because he is an illegal Egyptian alien less than a year after September 11, 2001 and he was referred to as such throughout the trial by the prosecution.
His entire trial was more of an immigration trial and not about the facts or lack of facts in the criminal case.
The jury sat through three days of listening about how Onsy was an Egyptian illegal alien. Onsy had a public defender who believed in Onsy’s innocence so much and also believed that the prosecution had no case against Onsy that he did not prepare or present any evidence in support of Onsy.
Onsy is a 61 year old Coptic Orthodox man who was born and raised in Egypt. Onsy was in the Egyptian military when he was a young man back in Egypt. During his service, Onsy was being forced by his superiors to convert his religion to Islam. When Onsy refused, they imprisoned him and tortured him. Onsy was finally able to escape from the army. He and his wife to be Fadia, fled from Egypt and through the years eventually made their way to Italy where they lived for a number of years.
Although they never became Italian citizens, they were given legal stay in the country based on a temporary work Visa that they renewed every couple of years. This Visa was granted to them because they opened a small dry cleaning business. Onsy created a home for himself and his wife Fadia and built a successful business in Italy. Onsy and his wife raised two young daughters while in Italy.
Onsy’s brother Jack was also a Coptic Orthodox living in Egypt and was also persecuted because of his faith. He was in fear for his life and his wife and young children Jack applied for asylum through the World Churches Council and was granted asylum to the USA and brought his family to America.
Jack abandoned his first wife shortly after he came to the US, kidnapped his two children, moved to another state with a young woman who was 18 and fathered three young daughters with her.
Through the years, Jack and Onsy stayed in constant contact with one another and one of their biggest wishes were that they could be united in the US and live out the rest of their lives together helping each other. Although Onsy had a tourist Visa, (B1 B2) that allowed him to visit his brother in the US often, it was not enough.
In 1997, Jack was eventually guided to an immigration attorney in the US who filed for a work Visa for Onsy and his family so they could come and live and work legally in the US.
The work Visa (H1B) was granted for Onsy and family.
The attorney gave Onsy bad advice and told him to liquidate his business and life in Italy and come to the US using his tourist Visa that he already had. The attorney told Onsy that he would get him the H1 B Visa stamp once he arrived in the US.
Onsy followed the attorney’s advice and quickly came to the US in February 1998.
After Onsy and his family’s arrived in the US, the attorney told them that he would not be able to get them the approved work Visa as he had promised, and that he was mistaken to have advised them as he did. They could only get the Visa back in Italy. The attorney told them not to worry and that he would file a new application for them and get them a new work Visa from within the US.
Onsy and his family had been staying with his brother Jack in a trailer that was set up next to Jack’s house.
The attorney filled the new application and it fell under a “CAP”. This is a time when INS would accept applications for various Visas but not issue any because they had given out all the allowed number of Visas for that time period. During this time, anyone that filed an application for a Visa would not be considered “out of status because they had a pending application, they could not work however.
During this time, Onsy’s financial situation kept getting worse. Because he followed the attorney’s advise and did not take the time to properly sell his business and liquidate his assets and belongings in Italy and rushed to bring his family to the US, he did not bring much money to begin with and he was unable to work.
Tensions began to grow between the two brothers mostly because of money and other matters.
It took over a year and a half for Onsy’s application to be looked at. Onsy’s application was then denied.
The attorney filled an appeal for Onsy and that kept him legal.
Onsy had no money available to him at this point and could no longer go back to Italy because he no longer owned the business that allowed him the Visa and he had no money to start another business.
If Onsy could not get legal stay in the US, and he could not get back into Italy, he knew he would be sent to Egypt and that meant certain imprisonment and torture for him because he escaped the army.
At great sacrifice, Onsy and his wife sent their daughter back to Italy so not to risk her status in the US. Onsy’s daughter was born in Italy and although still not considered an Italian citizen because they go by the parent’s citizenship, the rules were still different enough for her so that she could go back into the country.
During this time, the problems between Jack and Onsy escalated and they were not speaking.
Jack, who had confided a lot of secrets to his younger brother as he was his one and only confidant through the years, began to worry that Onsy would try to use some of the information he knew about him to hurt him with. Although Onsy would never do that, Jack was a very paranoid man and believed that the rift that developed between him and his brother could lead to Onsy divulging what he knows about Jack. Jack lived with the do unto others before they do unto you mentality. Jack decided that he had to get rid of his brother Onsy. He wanted him deported.
Jack had Onsy’s appeal withdrawn without any notice to Onsy. While Onsy was waiting for his appeal, his extension on the tourist Visa had expired and he could not renew it again. He was still legal while the appeal was pending but once it was withdrawn, he would become out of status.
INS arrested Onsy a few days after his appeal was withdrawn after receiving an anonymous call that he was an illegal immigrant who was “molesting his brother’s children”. Onsy was then informed for the first time that his appeal was withdrawn without his consent or knowledge.
Onsy was released the same day by INS after their investigation showed the allegations of molestation were false and because Onsy did not have any criminal record, but he and his wife were put into deportation status.
Jack was very angry that Onsy was released and could still stay in the US pending immigration proceedings. He thought that once arrested by INS, Onsy would be immediately deported to Egypt. Jack decided that since his brother was released because he did not have a criminal record, he would see to it that a criminal record was created for Onsy.
Onsy was told by the immigration judge that he should file for asylum given his history back in Egypt. Onsy hired an immigration attorney who began asylum proceedings for him and his wife.
In December 1999, less than a month from the time Onsy was arrested by INS and released, he was arrested again this time by the police. Onsy was accused of attempting to molest one of his brother Jack’s young daughters over 16 months before, sometime around August 1998.
Onsy was released the next day on a $1,000 cash bail by a judge who made the comment that he did not think there was a case based on the police report. There was no evidence whatsoever.. The only reason for the arrest was Jack’s daughter’s word of saying he one time tried to molest her.
Although the accusation came from one of Jack’s three young girls, everyone knew that it was Jack behind it. Jack had done a very similar thing to his nephew some years back when he wished to get rid of him. Jack had done other things to other family members in the past when he did not want them around any more. He had complete control of his young girls and could manipulate them to do anything he asked of them, especially this particular daughter.
Jack is my father, and I know from first hand experience the kind of manipulation and control he exercises over his family especially the girls for reasons not included here because of space limitations but have elaborated on fully in Onsy’s upcoming web site.
Onsy was given a public defender that immediately believed in Onsy’s innocence and felt that the prosecution had no case.
Onsy waited for a trial for over three years. During that time, Onsy’s asylum trial took place. Although Onsy’s immigration attorney was supposed to get an expert witness to testify to the validity of Onsy’s claims, he did not. Also, the attorney was ambushed when Jack showed up as a surprise witness to testify against Onsy.
Jack lied on the stand and told the judge that there were no problems in Egypt and that Onsy was treated well in the army. He also told the judge that he went to Egypt recently just to get evidence that proved that Onsy changed his date of birth on his passport. (Onsy had to change his date of birth on his passport in order to escape from the army and Egypt).
At the end of the hearing, the judge wrote that she believed the older brother, Jack, and without anyone to contradict his testimony and without anyone backing up Onsy and with a pending criminal complaint, she denied Onsy’s asylum.
Onsy was then put into deportation proceedings again and his attorney filed and appeal.
Right before Onsy’s trial took place, December 2002, he saw the tape “SANE” interview of his niece accusing him of attempting to molest her and he broke down completely. He could not stand the pain that hit him all at once and flooded his whole being. He loved his niece so much and loved his brother still and could not believe that they have done this to him. This was the worst kind of accusation that someone can accuse a man of doing as far as Onsy was concerned.
Following that, Onsy attempted suicide several weeks before his trial. Although he eventually recovered, the overdose had affected both his short-term memory and impaired his ability to walk. Onsy is now in a wheelchair.
In December of 2002, the criminal trial began. With no physical evidence of any kind, a complaint made 16 months after the alleged attack and only an accusation with no given date for the specific incident, the prosecution focused on immigration matters, Onsy’s business history and mostly how he is an illegal alien, and very little to do with the actual charges. This was more of an immigration trial than a criminal trial.
It is our belief that the only thing the jury saw was this Egyptian who was an illegal alien post 9-11
Onsy was found guilty of four counts and sentenced to three to five years in prison.
Onsy currently is serving his time in Norfolk Massachusetts, a middle security prison. He has a deportation order for him and his wife pending his release from prison. Onsy is due to be released in September 2007.
Upon his release, if nothing is done, he will be automatically taken into federal custody and put in another prison to await deportation. This could be a few weeks, or a couple of months.
Onsy is convinced that if deported back to Egypt, he will be imprisoned and tortured
Over the past few years since Onsy has been in prison, his family has talked to numerous Immigration attorneys to see what can be done to stay the deportation and to see what other options that could be available to Onsy and his wife to allow them to stay in the US legally. The constant response was that there is nothing that can be done to keep Onsy and his wife here and stay the deportation unless the criminal conviction is addressed.
For the past few years, we have sent out letters to numerous organizations and spoken to many attorneys to help Onsy and reverse the conviction with no luck. Almost all organizations that take on innocence cases deal with DNA evidence only. Since there is no DNA evidence in this case organizations and most attorneys would not get involved. Those attorneys that would help required such a great deal of money that the family simply could not raise on their own.
Onsy and his family continued to pray and try all avenues.
Recently, Onsy’s family was referred to an outstanding criminal attorney who is also a very good person with a big heart.
Onsy has also drawn to him a local family who was kind enough to donate a sum of money that allowed this attorney to look at Onsy’s case. Also, Onsy’s priest, who strongly believes in his innocence has done what he can to collect donations from people for Onsy. Unfortunately, he has been sent to Bethlehem recently.
After looking at Onsy’s case and all the other evidence, the attorney has determined that Onsy has a “substantial” defense and a very good chance of overturning his conviction through the filing of a motion for a new trial.
Most of the investigating and document acquiring is almost completed and the attorney almost has all that he needs to put together and write and file this motion.
Once this motion is filed, Onsy has a far greater chance of getting his deportation stayed.
This will also open new doors for Onsy immigration-wise.
Onsy is a remarkable man and his faith and spirituality is amazing. Onsy often says that he forgives Jack for what he has done to him and prays for Jack’s soul and that he finds peace in his life. Onsy says that even though he is the one behind bars and that his freedom was taken from him for the past few years, he says that he knows that he is still more at peace with God and spiritually freer than his brother.
He is grateful for his wife and her undying love and support and for his daughter and niece and for all the people that have supported him and believed in him.
Everyone that meets Onsy believes in his innocence and sees how remarkable this man is. Even most of the guards in his prison treat him in a way that shows that they believe him to be an innocent man.
Onsy’s immigration situation depends on the clearing of this conviction. He has options available to him to re-open his asylum case as well as other avenues that he could try, however, without this conviction removed, there is no hope of keeping him in the US and saving his life.
If this conviction is not overturned and he is allowed to stay in the US legally, he will be deported to Egypt. Once in Egypt, he will be imprisoned for the rest of his life.
Although Onsy wished to come and live in America with the rest of his family, he was at least safe and had a fully functional life in Italy. This country issued him a work Visa, based on that he gave everything up that he had worked so hard establishing for years and came here. Then when he comes here to live and work as the work visa promised him that he could do, he is made to wait for close to two years where his future and his family’s future hang in the balance and he can not work to support himself and his family. Then he is denied the same visa that he was initially approved for. The Licensed US immigration attorney gave him bad advice. He trusted that a legitimate US attorney would guide him properly and followed the advice and came to this country giving up his safety for what he thought was another safe place to be, then he is told sorry, you were given bad advice. He then falls victim to his older brother. He is then told to file for asylum and he does and is then turned down leaving him with no safety, no money, and no way to go back to anywhere safe. He is told that the only place he can go to now is Egypt. The very place that he fled from to live safe and free the difference is now he is also considered an enemy of the country because of his asylum application. He is then let down by our justice system and convicted of a crime he did not commit. He is then told that no one can help him.
Overturning Onsy’s conviction is not just about
clearing his name and righting a huge miscarriage of justice, it is mainly
about saving two lives. His and his wife’s.