Jordanian American free after extortion charges are dropped

THE BAY CITY TIMES
 

March 17, 2009, 8:02AM

Records indicate Ghaith didn't make calls to family members, Attorney Jason Gower says.

After six months in jail on extortion charges, Fawaz Ghaith is a free man, and trying to put his family back together.
Charges against Ghaith, a 47-year-old Jordanian American accused of threatening to kill four family members during a September phone call, were dismissed by a judge on Monday afternoon. Ghaith was to leave jail shortly after.


The dismissal by Bay County Circuit Judge William J. Caprathe was made without prejudice, meaning Ghaith can be charged again if he makes unwanted contact with the victims.



Defense attorney Jason Gower of Bay City said he's sure that won't happen, and is working to reunite Ghaith with his two daughters, two sons and wife, who have remained in the area since his September 2008 arrest. "Thank you, your honor," Ghaith told Caprathe after a short hearing Monday afternoon. "You're welcome," the judge said. "Good luck to you, sir."


Richard Dresser, assistant Bay County prosecutor, said he decided to dismiss the case after defense attorneys recently presented him with phone records. Gower says those records show there weren't any phone calls made from Ghaith's cell phone or received at the house when the threats were allegedly phoned in. Dresser said his office only received the phone records two weeks ago, and didn't have time to refute them before going to trial. "The records, on their face, presented us a problem related to the timing of the events," Dresser said. He said his office will continue to investigate the records, in case Ghaith makes future threats.
Ghaith, dressed in orange jail clothes and shackled at the wrists and ankles, came to court Monday, a day before a re-trial on two counts of extortion was to begin.



The first go-round ended in a mistrial in January after Caprathe gave improper instructions to the jury. Ghaith faced a minimum of 79 months in prison, a defense attorney said. He was accused of threatening to kill his mother-in-law, her husband, his teenage daughter and his wife during a September 2008 phone call. Police found no weapons in a rented car Ghaith drove from Indianapolis to Bay County's Gibson Township, where his daughter was staying. But prosecutors said Ghaith could have planned to kill the relatives with his bare hands.



Gower alleges that police filed trumped up charges due to Ghaith's race and Muslim religion. Gower said Ghaith, a truck driver with addresses in Florida and Texas, drove to a trailer where his daughter was staying to try to talk some sense into her. She had left Jordan without a job and he was concerned about her well-being, Gower said. The mother-in-law was upset and called police.
"At 47, he's never been in trouble," Gower said. Dresser denied the religious and racial accusations. "That's simply false," he said. "He's not the only person who we've charged with extortion for making threats over the telephone."


Gower said he hopes to set up a family meeting soon at his office. Ghaith works in the United States and visits his family twice a year in Jordan. "He wants to see his children," Gower said. "He still loves his wife."