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Source: The News & Advance, Lynchburg, Va.倉Jan. 18--Sherman Hughes traveled to the Dominican Republic during the fall to study and work on a documentary about life in impoverished communities beyond the lure of their tourist attractions.But in the past month, the Lynchburg native has found himself in a legal quandary restricting him from leaving the country, according to his online blog and email correspondence with The News & Advance.A fire at his apartment in December and ensuing legal issues with authorities in a Caribbean beach village in the Dominican Republican's northern shore left him facing a potential 30-year jail sentence, he wrote in a blog post several days after Christmas.A fire broke out in the bedroom of his condo while he was at a nearby beach on Dec. 6, the blog states. After finding a lawyer, Hughes wrote he was arrested in Puerto Plata and spent two days in jail. After posting $800 bail, he wrote he was informed he is restricted from leaving the country for six months without permission from a judge due to a pending investigation.The owner of the condo has asked for $10,000 for the charges to be dropped, Hughes said in a recent email to The News & Advance.A representative of the rental company in the Dominican Republic, who declined to give her name when reached for comment, said the company is following a contractual agreement with Hughes. The agreement means the user of the condo is liable for the damages if an incident like a fire occurs and she said the company is trying to recoup damages.The representative deferred further questions to a lawyer for the company, who could not be reached for comment.Hughes, who had denied involvement with the fire, said recently when reached for comment the total the company seeks has been scaled back by several thousand dollars and he and his lawyer are in negotiations to get a flight back to the U.S. in the near future.Hughes was born in Lynchburg and grew up on Polk Street. A 1998 graduate of Holy Cross Regional Catholic School in Lynchburg and 2000 graduate of the University of Richmond in 2002, he describes himself as an anthropologist and educator.He has studied in Argentina and li24小時迷你倉ed in Ecuador and Peru, and traveled to many countries in Latin America. In the past seven years he said he has worked in education in Washington, D.C. and taught at George Washington University, Trinity University and the Paul Public Charter School.Abe Hughes, his father, who lives on Polk Street with his wife, said they hope for a resolution."Sherman growing up, along with his brother Abraham, a Holy Cross and [Virginia Military Institute] grad, made our jobs as parents easy," he said. "They both turned out to be very well-rounded individuals and we are very proud parents."He expressed thanks to those who have reached out to help his son through his blog."With our faith in God, along with the many responses and support of family, friends, churches and the community, we look forward to Sherman's safe return home," he said. "We thank everyone for their many prayers."Adi McCauley, owner of Magnolia Foods, said she and Sherman Hughes graduated from Holy Cross the same year and describes him as a "real friendly, likeable guy" who excelled at athletics and often visited area nursing homes on the weekends."He is just a really good guy," she said. "He was always willing to help other people."She said she didn't hesitate to give money toward his online efforts to fight the charges overseas when she learned of his ordeal.McCauley said she is friends with his family and through the years has heard about Sherman's many trips to third-world nations. She does not believe the accusation of arson are true, she said."His mission is to go to these countries to learn and to help people and that's it," she said. "He would never do anything like that. Anybody who knows Sherman would say the same thing."Sherman Hughes wrote in his blog that, despite the ordeal, he has met "amazing" citizens of the Dominican Republic."I've learned about the power of community when faced with difficult situations and that education of the masses is the only savior for the future of this beautiful island," he said.Copyright: ___ (c)2014 The News & Advance (Lynchburg, Va.) Visit The News & Advance (Lynchburg, Va.) at .newsadvance.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉旺角