Adviser to detained church members may have a lengthy criminal past
http://cache.boston.com.nyud.net:8090/resize/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2010/02/13/1266105815_9864/539w.jpgJorge Puello, left, who provided legal advice to 10 Americans held in Haiti on
kidnapping charges, is not registered as a lawyer in the Dominican Republic and
lacks a law degree. (Javier Galeano/ Associated Press)
By Marc Lacey
New York Times / February 14, 2010
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - The man who was providing legal advice to the American church members arrested in Haiti may have a string of legal charges against him in the United States as well as a warrant for his arrest in El Salvador for sex trafficking, records show.
The man, Jorge Puello, was brought into the case from the Dominican Republic as a lawyer to help the 10 Americans arrested last month for trying to remove 33 children from the country after the earthquake without government permission. A website that was abruptly taken down Friday described Puello and his cousin, Alejandro Puello, as law partners.
But Jorge Puello is not registered as a lawyer in the Dominican Republic, and Alejandro Puello said in an interview yesterday that his cousin had no law degree, did not work with him, and was missing.
Exactly how Jorge Puello got involved in the case remains unclear. He said he had been hired as a lawyer by the Central Valley Baptist Church in Meridian, Idaho, which five of the Americans attended. A lawyer for one of the 10 said Puello never represented his client.
More:
http://www.boston.com/news/world/latinamerica/articles/2010/02/14/adviser_to_detained_church_members_may_have_a_lengthy_criminal_past/