Urgent Help Needed to Free Gunnar Bjornstad

Hi,

I'm Ian Bjornstad, brother of Gunnar Bjornstad. I'm reaching out because some terrible luck has befallen Gunnar. He is in jail in the Sultanate of Oman, pending a civil case against him, possibly looking at indefinite jail time.

In 2004, Gunnar moved to Oman where he got a job sandblasting & painting military vehicles. Before long, he was recognized for his IT skills, and has since made a career working in the IT field. Most recently a company he worked for was liquidated, unfortunately without Gunnar being given notice. The timing of the liquidation was catastrophic: Gunnar simultaneously lost his legal standing in the country. He lost his legal permission to work or even live in the country.

However, due to existing plans for ongoing government work, Gunnar decided to stay in Oman.

Unfortunately the government work never materialized. Without the ability to work in Oman, Gunnar accrued debt, especially rent owed to his landlord. He subsequently had a travel restriction placed on him, making it impossible for him to leave Oman.

On December 20th of 2024, Omani police broke into Gunnar's home and arrested him in the middle of the night.

He has been in jail ever since, with a pending civil case against him for rent owed.

Gunnar will almost certainly lose the case, and his jail term will be indefinite until the debt is paid off.

In a terrible Catch-22, if Gunnar goes to jail, he will never be able to pay the debt off. In order to pay the debt, Gunnar must avoid going to jail, and be able to work, either remotely or in another country.

Gunnar's primary goal, and his only chance at avoiding indefinite jail time in Oman, is to arrange an agreeable settlement with the landlord. Gunnar must pay at least a portion of what is owed (13,400 OMR; or approximately $35,000 USD in total), and provide a plan to pay the rest over time. But Gunnar has no money and no substantial assets.

The court date is set for February 20th of this year (in just a few days).

His father, sister, and I have already contributed what we can, and it's not enough.

If you are able to help with a contribution of any size, it will help give Gunnar a chance to indefinite imprisonment.

If you are unable to help, we understand.

If you know of any remote job opportunities that Gunnar could work from Oman, any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you for reading and for any help you can offer.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please don't hesitate to be in touch.

Best,

Ian Bjornstad