HOUSTON - Carlos and Jemima Guimaraes could face up to three years in prison in the international kidnapping case involving their grandson who they took to Brazil illegally.
The couple was found guilty back in May. They are in court Wednesday to face sentencing in the case.
Their attorney is asking for probation.
The couple believed they were justified in what they did because they say their daughter Marcelle was being abused when she and her son Nico went to Brazil for a wedding in 2013 and never returned.
TIMELINE: A mother's decision to kidnap her son
Dr. Chris Brann, a Houston physician, has been fighting for five years to get his now 8-year-old son back.
The grandparents were initially arrested at an airport when they returned to the U.S. unaware of their indictments.
Brann’s attorney says he hopes Marcelle Guimaraes realizes that returning Nico is the only hope for her parents to get a lighter sentence.
Marcelle Guimaraes spoke with KHOU 11 News in an exclusive interview and said she took her son to escape her now ex-husband, who she described as a monster who hit her, was addicted to pornography and was a threat to their only child.
Brann spoke earlier Wednesday morning prior to the sentencing saying this is not about revenge. He added he would continue to keep fighting to get Nico back regardless of what happens Wednesday.
“I continue to love my son as much now as I ever have,” Brann said Wednesday morning. “He has right to have father in his life, and I have a right to raise my own son…Nobody has the right to take that away from me.”