Elmvale family says loved one wrongfully imprisoned in Honduras

Family wants help freeing loved one from Honduras prison An Elmvale family says a loved one has been wrongfully imprisoned in Honduras. CTV Barrie's Sean Grech has more.

An Elmvale family is making a plea to the federal government after they say a loved one was wrongfully jailed in Honduras.

Janet Spring has been doing everything in her power to help her daughter's partner of eight years. They are demanding the release of Edwin Espinel.

The 41-year-old Honduran was arrested last month, following a massive protest over the victory of President Juan Orlando Hernandez.

"The Hernandez government came down very hard on the protestors. They arrested many pro-democracy workers," says Spring.

Spring's daughter Karen Spring and Espinel work for the Honduras Solidarity Network of North America. It's a group that advocates for solidarity with the Honduran social movement.

"We are very worried about his safety because he is in a maximum security prison, and Karen. We are also worried about her safety for she is linked to him and for her work in Honduras," Spring says.

She’s now calling on the Canadian government to act. She has written emails to Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, but has not heard back. CTV Barrie also reached out Foreign Affairs for comment, but our attempts went unreturned.

MP Alex Nuttall has also written letters to Freeland, and MP Bruce Stanton is doing the same.

"Possibly would be in a positon to work through channels to find some kind of solution to ideally get Mr. Espinel released from prison," Stanton says.

Spring says she will keep pressuring the Canadian government to help get Espinel freed.