A Canadian teacher released from prison in Indonesia Friday will take some time to reconnect with his wife before working to get back to Canada “as soon as possible,” his brother says.
Neil Bantleman, 45, was released from prison Friday, along with teaching assistant Ferdinant Tjiong. The pair had been sentenced to 10 years for alleged child sexual offences, but a court in Jakarta overturned their convictions earlier in the day Friday.
Bantleman and Tjiong, who had been in custody for more than a year, walked out of Cipinang prison Friday morning. They were greeted by Tracy Bantleman, who is also a teacher, along with jubilant family, friends, and several fellow teachers from their former school.
Bantleman’s brother, Guy, says his brother will probably now take a few days to get caught up with his wife, Tracy, before they look into coming home to Canada.
Guy says it was wonderfully surreal to see the pictures of their release. But he added that, after months of trying to understand Indonesia’s judicial process, he’s cautiously hopeful that this is the end of his brother’s legal fight.
“We’re obviously thankful this phase is over and now it’s about trying to figure out will there be an appeal by the prosecutors,” Bantleman told CTV’s Canada AM from his home in Burlington, Ont.
A spokesman for the Jakarta prosecutor's office has said they plan to appeal the decision to the country’s Supreme Court.
Bantleman said for now, his brother and wife will probably take a few days to catch up. Their next step will be to get home to Canada “as soon as possible.”
Bantleman and Tjiong were convicted in April of sexually abusing students who attended the kindergarten at the school where the pair taught. They always maintained their innocence and were supported by fellow teachers and the principal at the school, now called the Jakarta Intercultural School.
Four janitors from the school were sentenced to eight years in the same case and a woman received a seven year prison sentence as an accomplice. A sixth suspect killed himself in custody by drinking bathroom cleaner.
The principal and a number of other teachers have alleged that the sexual abuse claims were motivated by money. The mother of one of the children sued the school for alleged negligence and was seeking $125 million in compensation.
Bantleman’s legal fortunes finally changed on Monday, when the same district court that convicted the pair threw out the $125-million lawsuits, saying there was no proof that any of the alleged abuses had taken place.
That decision came after a court in Singapore decided that the allegations of sexual abuse could not be proven and that the mother accusing Bantleman had defamed him, Tjiong,and the school. The court ordered the mother to pay $164,700 in damages.
As for Bantleman, it’s not clear what will be next for him when he returns to Canada.
“That is something we’ll have to talk about as time goes on -- what his next phase in life is going to be after all of this,” said Guy Bantleman.
With reports from The Canadian Press
