By Canadian Press

Neil Bantleman returns to Canada after years in Indonesian prison, family says

Jul 11, 2019 | 2:19 PM

The family of Neil Bantleman, a Canadian teacher jailed for years in Indonesia on disputed sexual assault charges, says the man is back in Canada.

Bantleman’s brother, Guy Bantleman, did not immediately provide details of his sibling’s release or exact location.

Neil Bantleman and an Indonesian teaching assistant were arrested in July 2014 while working at a prestigious international school in Jakarta.

Both men were accused of abusing three students and went through years of legal wrangling in Indonesian courts.

The men were initially convicted, saw those convictions overturned, then ultimately went back to prison when Indonesia’s highest court reinstated the original decision and sentenced them to 11 years behind bars.

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Bantleman’s family consistently maintained both the teacher and his co-accused were innocent and had become victims of a corrupt legal system in Indonesia.

The federal government had been lobbying for Bantleman’s release for years, but Global Affairs Canada declined to comment on his return Thursday.

The Canadian Press