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Canadian Teacher Acquitted of Sex Assault by Indonesian Court and Freed

Canadian Neil Bantleman and teaching assistant Ferdinant Tjiong had been imprisoned for allegedly abusing three kindergarten students at an exclusive private school in Jakarta. A higher court has overturned the convictions.
Photo by Achmad Ibrahim/AP

A Canadian teacher's friends, family, and supporters let out cheers Friday morning as he walked out of a jail in Jakarta after an Indonesian court overturned sex assault convictions against him and a teaching assistant.

In April, Neil Bantleman, of Burlington, Ont, was sentenced to 10 years in jail for allegedly assaulting and sexually abusing three kindergarten students at an exclusive private institution called Jakarta International School. Indonesian teaching assistant Ferdinant Tjiong received the same punishment.

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The pair maintained their innocence and appealed the conviction to the Jakarta High Court.

"I want to say thank you to you all for believing in us," said Bantleman, who repeatedly hugged and kissed his wife, Tracy, upon release. "We're happy that the truth has finally come out."

A spokesman for the Jakarta prosecutor's office said the High Court's decision would be appealed to the Supreme Court.

One of the allegations against Bantleman, 45, was that he was able to subdue one of the boys using a magical stone he pulled out of the air, the Toronto Star reported. And CBC reported that new medical evidence showed the three alleged victims had no major injuries.

The two acquitted teachers were entangled in a case in which six janitors at the Jakarta International School were accused of abuse. Five were found guilty, and a sixth committed suicide in jail, CBC reported.

The two acquitted teachers were in jail for more than a year, and their court proceedings were shrouded in secrecy thanks to a media ban.

The lawyer for both men, Hotman Paris Hutapea, has alleged the parents of the children were making the rape claims up so they could sue the school for negligence, CBC reported. The parents wanted $125 million from the school for the unproven rape allegations, but that civil suit was thrown out earlier this week.

When Tjiong and Bantleman were released, Hutapea told the Associated Press, "Justice has been done."

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Both teachers maintained their innocence throughout the process, and their families, friends and colleagues stood by them.

When his brother was initially convicted of the charges, Guy Bantleman told CBC he didn't expect the trial to be so one-sided, and when he was released, Guy told the Toronto Star his brother's name had been cleared.

The Star reported that Bantleman, who previously taught in Calgary, wanted to get out of Indonesia as soon as possible, but for now he has to wait to see whether an appeal happens. The teacher's family expects him to be back in Canada by mid-September, CTV Calgary reported.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Follow Hilary Beaumont on Twitter: @hilarybeaumont