Dad from The Woodlands remains in Russia prison 3 years after arrest for child abuse allegations

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Monday marks three years since a man from The Woodlands was arrested in Russia.

The 67-year-old, David Barnes, was found guilty of abusing his two sons and sentenced to 21 years, but those claims were never substantiated by law enforcement in Texas.

Barnes' sisters and friends spoke with ABC News and shared more about their main struggle, which has been trying to get the U.S. government to designate him as wrongly detained.

In late 2021, Barnes flew to Moscow to try to obtain visitation rights or custody of his two sons.

His Russian ex-wife allegedly took the boys out of the United States in 2019. Texas authorities charged her with a felony for it, but in Russia, Barnes is the one who wound up in trouble.

The family court system convicted him of abusing his children here in the Houston area between 2014 and 2018. However, Texas authorities also looked into those claims and didn't find sufficient evidence to verify them.

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Barnes is appealing his conviction while his family and loved ones continue waiting for U.S. officials to classify his detention as wrongful.

They said they've only heard from U.S. officials twice in the past three years.

"That's why we're pleading for somebody to pay attention. We'd like to do maybe monthly calls and then update us, even if there's not much of an update. They didn't want to do that," Carol Barnes said.

"We've just heard nothing. To hear David's voice when he's calling from there, how desperate he is, it just breaks your heart, and we know he's innocent," Paul Carter, a family friend, said.

Those loved ones say they're concerned Barnes may not last another year as his conditions and his health deteriorate. They do remain hopeful that the new Trump administration will be more responsive.

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