While the customer at the heart of the ruling lost out in one area of her complaint, she won permission to pursue an alternative case against Barclays.
the u.s. government starts moving when an american is being held hostage. she was only 24, but elisa levy lived to tell about an ordeal that most of us could ever imagine. weeks of isolation, pain and fear. i did not want to die. i really wanted to try to do something about it. this is a story of strength, stamina and survival. how one young woman rose to a harrowing challenge. elisa used every ounce of determination and creativity that she had. she was willing to do anything, everything she could, to keep her family and herself alive. in a sense, elisa levy comes from two different worlds. her father, james levy, is an american, born and raised on long island a few miles from new york city.
her mother, alicia ortiz was an ecuadorian schoolteacher. the two fell in love when james was a peace corps volunteer in the 19 80s, and they married soon after. translator: i had no idea that i would marry a green go. there are four children are all dual citizens of the u.s. and ecuador. i always thought it would be better to take the kids to the states and bring them up in the states. but this american dad found their family adored the rural peaceful life in south america. james and his wife built a in the border of the ecuadorian jungle just over the border from columbia. they started an environmental group, el tropical, to protect the endangered reinforced around them. elisa, there are others that
yeah, and when people came to talk to me, it was like a back to reality. and reality hit hard the morning of sunday, october 18th. they put a chain on my feet. they put a chain around your legs and ankles? my ankles, yes. what was that chained to? to a tree right by the door at the tenth. alone, chained to a tree, lisa levy did not know if anyone realized that she was missing, or if her family had been armed. she had no idea what would come next. did you think that you would survive? i did not want to think about that. coming up, a frantic father negotiates for his daughter s life. translator: if you want her back, it will be $1 million. could her family come up with the money in time? when dateline continues. nues
the levy home. we had to get them prepared mentally. look, this is going to be a long process. it will not be solved overnight. the authorities told the levys that they would try to track down elisa s captors, but the most crucial work and solving and abduction is communicating with the kidnappers themselves. the ringleader had left a phone number wait elisa s mom, who would make that call? the agents decided that james levy, who now goes by a spanish name, jaime, had the department to take on the delicate task. jaime seemed to be able to handle it. it s an incredibly difficult thing to do, to talk to the kidnappers of your own child. definitely. but the u.s. and ecuadorian agents were prepared to help. they brought sample scripts, telling jaime what they expect their captors to say, and what he should say in return. after a coaching session, he made the call, recorded. hello? translator: hello, this is jaime levy. i am searching for my daughter, elisa levy.