The only data he really lost is messages and what not, which isn't too bad (I doubt many people store life critical data in their Facebook messages). Photos he should already have on his computer. It sounded to me that he wanted his Facebook account back so he could continue to use the site, not capture posts he made so they could be saved.
Anyway, I'd treat it as a lesson learned. You have no recourse with a free service. Don't count on it as always being there. Especially for services like Facebook that are burning through crazy amounts of cash. Facebook could go away entirely tomorrow and the world wouldn't grind to a halt.
This sort of data proprietarianism is just evil. For exactly the reasons that were discussing this topic today. Holding people hostage for their data is a slimy and vile way to treat your customers.
Is there a FB app that would backup your list of contacts and other information you'd like to have? Is it against the ToS?