Escaping Scam City | AN UPDATE ON AVA

Two months on from the verdict, Ava's battle continues.

LINK TO GIVE TO AVA'S GOFUNDME:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/vxg4d-support-avas-legal-battle-in-thailand

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_01 (00:01):
Cadence Productions.

SPEAKER_00 (00:08):
Heads up, this contains a spoiler, so if you
haven't listened to the otherepisodes in this series, you
might want to do that first.
It's been a little over twomonths since our last update.
In that episode, we asked you,our listening community, to help
fund a proper criminal defenselawyer for Ava.

(00:29):
Someone who'd take her caseseriously and go to bat for her.
We said we'd need around 5,000US dollars to cover legal fees
and bail, and that if we raisedmore, the surplus would go
straight to Ava and Micah,who've been doing it tough for
these years.
Well, a few things have happenedsince then.

(00:50):
First, we found an excellentThai law firm to take on the
case.
They've secured an extension tofile the appeal, and they're now
preparing it.
Second, and this is remarkable,thanks to you, we've raised over
12,000 US dollars to pay for thelegal work and to support Micah
and Ava.
Your help came from all over theworld, and your notes have been

(01:15):
beautiful to read.
In the face of the brutaldehumanization of forced
scamming, it is beyond preciousto read these messages and to be
reminded of the good in ourworld and the power of
community.
And this community, this act ofsolidarity, has meant an

(01:36):
enormous amount to Micah andAva.

SPEAKER_01 (01:45):
I am thankful.
So there must be hope.

(02:06):
Even though there's 10% that areevil, um, I'm so thankful for
these other people.

SPEAKER_00 (02:16):
If you haven't yet done so and would like to help,
the donation link is in the shownotes.
Messages for Ava and Micah canalso be submitted there.
Over the past two months, we'vealso gained more clarity on the
timeline.
Sadly, this appeal, what we hopewill overturn Ava's conviction,

(02:38):
is likely to not take months,but years.
The courts are jammed.
Things evidently move veryslowly.
So for now, Ava and Micah mustwait in this messy, uncertain
limbo.

SPEAKER_01 (02:55):
I feel like I'm just standing on a thin thread.
I could be convicted, I could befreed, but it's on a piece of
thin thread.
And I mean, I don't know what'sgoing to happen moving forward.

(03:16):
The justice system has failedme.
I was the one who was scammed,and I was the one who was um
forced to do all these thingsagainst my will, but um there
was no one to protect me, andthe the the justice system
really failed to see this.

SPEAKER_00 (03:39):
You know, I wish to have been able to tie this
series up in a neat bow for you,and to tell you that the appeal
had been swift and successful,that they'd been able to move on
with their lives, and that Micahwas finally able to take Ava to
Malaysia to meet his family.
But this is reality.

(04:00):
Like so many others caught up inthis web, they have no choice
but to carry the weight of loss.
Their story is a window into thelong tale of devastation this
industry leaves behind.
We'll keep you updated as we getnew info.
And we're also working on a fewbonus episodes, other important

(04:23):
stories from this world thatdidn't quite fit into the
six-part series.
Stay tuned for that.
For now, I want to finish withsomething Ava said on our call.
I asked her if she had anythingshe'd like to say to you, the
listener, directly.
And here's what she said.

SPEAKER_01 (04:44):
You know, the world is a dark place, but you have
given me light, and you havegiven me the energy to fight,
and like my husband said, don'tgo out there and um absorb the
negative energy, absorb thepositive energy, and you guys

(05:06):
are that positive energy.
So I am truly thankful um foryour support and your confidence
uh in my innocence.
Thank you so much.