Passport Not Returned From Embassy

[Falene 8]

I'm looking for some advice.  My fiance had his interview back in July and we were given 221g.  We gathered the requested documents (including his passport), and he submitted them in September which was within the allowed time frame.  On 10/16 it was returned and we knew at this point it was denied.  He opened a case after that asked about the status of the visa and his passport.  Below is a timeline from when they asked him if he wanted to withdraw his passport.

 

10/26 - He opened a case on Oct 26 and in the response they said "Also, kindly confirm if you wish to withdraw your passport."

11/2 - He replied on Nov 2 and said "This is in reference to the above mail I would like to request you to please release my passport as early as possible."

11/9 - One week passed without any response and again on Nov 9 he said, "As I have requested for withdrawal of my passport but I have not heard anything till now regarding the same. I request you once again to please release my passport".

11/14 - Then, on Nov 14 I also sent a request for his passport to be released.

11/15 - The response I received on Nov 15 said, "a case with the case number "Case-XXX" has already been escalated and is still in the process of being reviewed. So we request you to wait for the response."

11/21 - The date on the Notice of Decision I received from USCIS that stated all action was concluded due to petition being expired.

12/1 - I sent another request asking about his passport, but I have not received any response.

12/18 - I sent a request through the office of Senator Brown (Ohio), and they stated they would tell me when they hear from the embassy.
1/8 & 1/9 - I tried to send another request to the embassy, but I did not get the automated response that tells me a case has been opened.

 

The situation now, is that he hasn't received his passport back and we are not getting any communication.  He lost a job in Dubai because he is not able to travel.  He is talking to a lawyer who offered to serve a legal notice to the embassy, but this person is not an immigration lawyer so I'm not sure how much experience he has with this type of case.  Does anyone have some advice for what we can do?  We are already upset that he didn't get the visa, but this is just making the experience so much worse.