ByChris Clay/Metroland Media Group
Damian Buksa, 34, headed down to the island nation by himself in July for a two-week holiday in the Holguin area.
According to his friend Peter Zawadzki, Buksa rented a car and enlisted a Cuban man to act as a guide and driver to show him the country.
About six days into his trip, the pair got into a bad car crash. The man was killed and a young woman was injured but reportedly has since recovered. Buksa himself was hurt in the crash with Zawadzki saying he suffered a serious head injury and injuries to his face and legs.
The engineer was taken to hospital where Zawadzki said Cuban authorities informed his friend he had to pay more than $9,000 for the vehicle that was destroyed along with medical costs for the girl who was injured before he would be allowed to leave the country. Buksa's mother, Boguslawa Pec, said Buksa paid the bills on his credit card but that's when the story from officials changed.
Pec said Buksa was told he wouldn't be able to leave until an investigation was completed. He's currently still in Cuba.
"There's a big issue about Damian's health because he didn't receive proper medical care," said Zawadzki. "He's lost a lot of weight and apparently he keeps passing out. Our biggest concern is his health."
Family and friends are saying Buksa's situation is eerily similar to that of fellow Canadian Cody LeCompte, a teenager who was detained in Cuba for over three months in 2010 after being involved in a car accident.
"It seems like the (Canadian) government doesn't want to do anything," said Pec, who spoke with her son Wednesday. "I want them to push the Cuban authorities to finish this as soon as possible. This is devastating and my heart is broken."
Ian Trites, a spokesperson for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada, told The News they're providing aid to Buksa but couldn't go into specifics due to privacy concerns.
"Canadian consular officials in Guardalavaca, Cuba are in contact with local authorities to gather additional information and are providing consular assistance to the affected Canadian citizen as required," said Trites in an e-mail.
In travel advice for Cuba, the federal government warns that traffic accidents are a "frequent" reason for Canadians in Cuba to be arrested and detained.
"Accidents resulting in death or injury are treated as crimes and the onus is on the driver to prove innocence," reads the advisory. "Regardless of the nature of the accident, it can take five months to a year for a case to go to trial. In most cases, the driver will not be allowed to leave Cuba until the trial has taken place."
However, waiting isn't what Buksa's friends and family want to do.
"He goes on vacation, has this thing happen to him and now he's stuck in a foreign country by himself," said Zawadzki. "The government should get him out of the country or (pressure) the Cuban government (to let him return to Canada)."
Pec said she has reached out to Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird's office for help and has also been in contact with officials with the Consulate General of Cuba.
She said her son is living on credit cards, is in extremely poor health and doesn't speak the language.
"He's very upset and he's scared," said Pec.
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