Volz Freed, Now in Hiding

American Eric Volz was set free from a Nicaraguan prison hospital Friday afternoon, closing a chapter in the international saga—but not entirely ending the drama—that began when he was convicted of murdering his Nicaraguan ex-girlfriend in February.

After his release, Volz immediately left the country and went into hiding due to reported threats against him, according to Volz family spokesperson Melissa Campbell. His mother, Maggie Anthony—who flew to Nicaragua after her son was absolved on Monday—arrived home safely in Nashville on Friday. It was not announced whether Volz would be traveling to the U.S. to meet his family.

In the same decision that cleared Volz and overturned his 30-year prison sentence, a Nicaraguan appellate court upheld the conviction of a Julio Martin Chamorro for the murder of Doris Jiménez, who was found strangled to death in the clothing store she owned. The decision inflamed many Nicaraguans, who accused judges of preferential treatment for the "gringo" and of taking bribes for his release. Prosecutors have said they will appeal the decision, but it is not clear where the case currently stands.

—Ryan Krogh

Eric Volz Freed

Eric Volz, the American who was being held in a Nicaraguan prison despite the fact his criminal sentence was overturned on Monday by an appellate court, was freed by a judge this afternoon.

The family has received word that Eric was just released from the prison hospital, but is waiting to give full confirmation until Eric and his mother Maggie Anthony are safely out of Nicaragua.

Yesterday, after meeting with Eric in prison, Maggie spoke to Outside about Eric's condition and gave a chronology of her attempts to get him released. Listen to the full interview here.

More to come...

Q&A: Eric Volz's Mother Speaks

Maggie Anthony, the mother of American Eric Volz, called from Nicaragua on Thursday after meeting with her son in prison to give Outside an update on Eric’s condition, and her efforts to get him released from prison. Listen to the complete podcast interview here.

Volz, whose story was detailed in Outside’s June issue, was absolved of murder charges on Monday, but still remains in Nicaraguan custody amidst an ongoing saga. Maggie told Outside that she hopes the Nicaraguan government will abide by court orders and release her son.

“It’s a really frightening situation because we just don’t know what’s going on,” Anthony said. “Nothing makes sense. Everything that is happening is totally illegal—everything. The only thing I know is that Eric has been declared innocent, and he should be free. Everything else feels like it’s being made up as they go.”

In February Volz was convicted of murder in the death of Doris Jiménez, his onetime girlfriend. This past week, his murder conviction was overturned by a Nicaraguan appellate court, but the judge who declared Volz guilty in his original trial has failed on numerous occasions to sign his release papers. Now Volz’s case appears to be headed to the Nicaraguan Supreme Court, and prosecutors have said they will suspend his release orders until that case is decided—the Friends of Eric Volz web site is now calling him a political prisoner. 

“It’s so hard to imagine that a judge can act in this manner,” Anthony said, speaking about Judge Ivette Toruño’s continued excuses for refusing to sign her son’s realse orders, including a flat tire, an incorrectly numbered—and stapled—case file, and missing documents. “The thing that is even more amazing is that it works,” she said. 

As of Friday morning, Volz’s lawyers were frantically trying to get him released before the Nicaraguan government closes for the holidays. It appears, however, that Eric will be spending Christmas in Nicaraguan custody.  Volz is currently being held in a prison hospital, and may have to wait for the government to reopen after the first of the year if he is not released today. Anthony said that the prospect of her son being transferred back to the main ward of the prison has her worried most.

“Our fear is that Eric will disappear,” she said. “It’s so dangerous right now, it’s so inflamed. If they were to send him back to the prison, I don’t think I would ever see him again."

Updates to come…

Volz Still In Nicaraguan Custody

The soap opera that is the case of Eric Volz, who was absolved on Monday by an appellate court in the murder conviction of his ex-girlfriend, continues to unfold like a Nicaraguan telenovela. 

Volz remains in Nicaraguan custody despite a ruling that called for his immediate release, and the judge who declared him guilty is now blocking his release from police custody, risking potential contempt charges. 

Before he can be freed from Nicaraguan custody, Volz needs Judge Ivette Toruño, who sentenced him to 30 years in prison for the murder of Doris Jiménez—his ex-girlfriend—to sign his release orders. On Monday, Judge Toruño left her office at 1:30 p.m. and never returned, missing an appointment to sign the release papers. On Tuesday, Judge Toruño missed another appointment because of a flat tire. She then claimed that she sent the release orders back to the appellate court in Granada because the pages were numbered incorrectly, according to Melissa Campbell, a Volz family spokesperson. Volz’s lawyer, Fabbrith Gomez, said that the appellate court never received the papers. He accused court officials of illegally detaining Volz while they attempt to mount an appeal to the Supreme Court.

Wednesday saw much the same drama. Judge Toruño failed again to attend an appointment regarding Volz, this time in front of a judge overseeing a habeas corpus petition—an order demanding an explanation as to why Volz is still being held—filed by Gomez. If she wasn't already, this missed appointment will likely place Toruño in contempt of court, although it is unclear whether a Nicaraguan court would seek charges.

The United States embassy in Nicaragua released a statement Wednesday, saying that they expect the Nicaraguan government to release Volz “as soon as possible” and “to respect internacional conventions regarding access for the detained…while the Granada Appeals court decision is being implemented.”

Maggie Anthony, Volz’s mother, arrived in Nicaragua Wednesday to see her son and fight for his release. After attempting to speak with someone at the Supreme Court of Nicaragua, to no avail, she left for the city of Granada, a horde of local and international media in tow, to meet with Gomez. There is no word yet on whether she will be allowed to visit her son, who is currently being held in a police hospital, suffering from kidney stones.

Updates to come as the story continues to unfold…

—Ryan Krogh 

Volz Saga Continues

Eric Volz remains in a Nicaraguan prison despite a court ruling that called for his immediate release, and friends and family are waiting anxiously for his papers to be processed amid reports that local media are calling for citizen’s to take justice into their own hands. 

Volz’s lawyer, Fabbrith Gomez, is currently stationed at the courthouse in Managua, waiting for Judge Ivette Toruño—who declared Volz guilty of murdering his one-time girlfriend, Doris Jiménez—to arrive and sign his release papers, according to Melissa Campbell, a Volz family spokesperson. Toruño failed to sign Volz’s release papers on Monday. 

Volz was found guilty in February of killing his ex-girlfriend in Nicaragua despite numerous witnesses testifying he was in another city at the time of the murder. An appeals court overturned his conviction on Monday.

Volz’s mother, Maggie Anthony, appeared on the Today Show with Meredith Vieira Tuesday morning, pleading for the Nicaraguan government to honor its court’s decision to free her son. A press conference by Gomez is scheduled for noon in Managua. 

More to come...

—Ryan Krogh

Click here to read Tony D’Souza’s exclusive story about the murder of Doris Jiménez and the trial of Eric Volz, which appeared in Outside’s June issue.

Volz Still Waiting on Release from Prison

Eric Volz, the American real-estate broker and magazine publisher who was found guilty in February of killing his ex-girlfriend in Nicaragua—and who had his conviction overturned Monday by an appeals court—remains in Nicaraguan custody, according to Melissa Campbell, a Volz family spokesperson.   

Monday’s 2-1 ruling by a Nicaraguan appellate court called for Volz’s immediate release, but Judge Ivette Toruño, who presided over Volz’s first trial and declared him guilty, failed to make her 2:00 p.m. appointment to sign his release papers, according to Campbell. The family spokesperson added he has been transferred back to the main ward of the prison from the prison hospital, where he has been recovering from intestinal infections more than a month. 

Despite the ruling and requests by Volz’s attorney, there is still no word on when he will be released.

More to come...

Click here to read Tony D’Souza’s exclusive story about the murder of Doris Jiménez, which appeared in Outside’s June issue.

—Ryan Krogh

Eric Volz To Be Released From Nicaraguan Jail

A Nicaraguan appeals court overturned the conviction of American Eric Volz, sentenced in February to a 30-year prison term for the rape and murder of Doris Ivania Jiménez, his Nicaraguan ex-girlfriend.

Jiménez, a young clothing boutique owner, was murdered in the store that she owned. Her death sparked outrage and resentment in the small fishing village of San Juan del Sur, which had seen an influx of Americans hoping to cash in on a real-estate boom in the area. Locals directed much of that resentment towards Volz, a real estate agent in the area, after he was accused of her murder. 

Novelist Tony D’Souza covered the story in Outside’s June issue, gaining access to members of Jiménez’s family, Volz's close friends, and Nicaraguan locals. Though networks and other major news organizations covered the event, D'Souza was the only American journalist to sit through all of Volz’s trial and the first magazine reporter to speak with Volz in prison.

Despite numerous alibis placing Volz more than two hours away from the scene of the crime, he was convicted of the murder along with Julio Martin “Rosita” Chomorro, a supposed accomplice. While overturning Volz's conviction, the appeals court upheld Chomorro’s. 

The ruling called for Volz’s immediate release as the country's attorney general vowed to appeal the decision to Nicaragua’s highest court.

More to come...