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Top court finds 2 guilty of sex abuse of Indonesian students Top court finds 2 guilty of sex abuse of Indonesian students
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JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia’s top court has overruled the acquittals of a Canadian and an Indonesian teacher and ordered longer prison terms for sexually abusing three young children at a prestigious international school in Jakarta. JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia’s top court overruled the acquittals of a Canadian and an Indonesian teacher and ordered longer prison terms for the men for sexually abusing three young children at a prestigious international school in Jakarta, a court official said Thursday.
Neil Bantleman and Ferdinant Tjiong had been sentenced to 10 years last April by the South Jakarta District Court. But they maintained innocence and filed appeals to the High Court, which acquitted them in August. Neil Bantleman and Ferdinant Tjiong had been sentenced to 10 years last April by the South Jakarta District Court. But they maintained their innocence and filed appeals to the High Court, which acquitted them in August, ruling there was not sufficient evidence to support their conviction.
Supreme Court spokesman Suhadi said Thursday a three-member judge panel handed down a verdict Wednesday based on the prosecutors’ appeal and increased their sentence to 11 years. The two teachers also were ordered to pay a $7,440 fine each or to serve six more months in jail. Supreme Court spokesman Suhadi said a three-member judge panel handed down a verdict Wednesday based on the prosecutors’ appeal.
They worked at the Jakarta International School, which is now called the Jakarta Intercultural School. “The judge panel concluded that the defendants were proven to have violated the 2007 Child Protection Law,” said Suhardi, who uses a single name. “It did not only reinstate the District Court’s verdict but also lengthened the sentence to 11 years.”
The two teachers at the Jakarta International School, now called the Jakarta Intercultural School, also were ordered to pay a fine of $7,440 each or to serve six more months in jail, Suhadi said.
Attempts to reach prosecutors and determine whether Bantleman or Tjiong was in custody were not immediately successful.
U.S. Ambassador Robert O. Blake expressed disappointment over the verdict, saying the outcome of the legal process will impact international views about the rule of law in Indonesia.
“We are shocked and disappointed by the decision announced by the Supreme Court to sentence two international school teachers,” Blake said in a statement. “It is not clear what evidence the Supreme Court used to overturn the High Court’s decision.”
Bantleman and Tjiong were arrested in July 2014 following allegations from parents of a 6-year-old student that he’d been sodomized.
Four male janitors at the school were already sentenced to eight years in prison in that case and a woman received a seven-year prison sentence as an accomplice. Police said a sixth suspect killed himself in custody by drinking bathroom cleaner.
The South Jakarta District Court threw out a civil lawsuit in which one child’s parents sought $125 million from the school for alleged negligence.
The school in southern Jakarta is attended by children of foreign diplomats, expatriates and Indonesia’s elite. It has 2,400 students aged 3 to 18 from about 60 countries.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.