Lori Berenson blocked from leaving Peru

December 17, 2011 New York Times

Lima, --

Peru - Lori Berenson, the New Yorker paroled last year after serving more than 15 years in prison here on a terrorism conviction, was blocked from leaving the country for what was to have been her first visit home since her arrest, she said Saturday.

A Peruvian court had granted her permission to visit her family in New York City for the holidays, but when she and her young son arrived at the airport Friday night, they were turned away by immigration authorities.

"They said I needed a document for immigration, and I didn't have it," Berenson said, "so they wouldn't let me leave the country." It was unclear what document immigration authorities wanted. Berenson said she had all of the documents required for travel.

Berenson was freed on parole last year but had been required to remain in Peru until the end of her 20-year sentence for collaborating with a rebel group in 1995.