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| Lawyers to challenge Indonesia court verdict on sex abuse | Lawyers to challenge Indonesia court verdict on sex abuse |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| JAKARTA, Indonesia — A lawyer representing two imprisoned teachers, a Canadian and an Indonesian, said Friday they will appeal a Supreme Court ruling that overturned their earlier acquittals on charges of sexually abusing three children at a prestigious international school. | |
| Neil Bantleman and Ferdinant Tjiong were sentenced to 10 years in prison last April by the South Jakarta District Court, but were acquitted by the High Court in August. | |
| On Wednesday, the Supreme Court overturned the acquittals and ordered them to serve 11-year prison terms. | |
| Their lawyer, Patra M. Zein, said Friday they will request a judicial review after they finish studying the verdict and gather new evidence. | Their lawyer, Patra M. Zein, said Friday they will request a judicial review after they finish studying the verdict and gather new evidence. |
| “We believe the verdict was reached without a careful and thorough examination,” Patra said. “We are awaiting a copy of the verdict to study it.” | |
| He said they would try to obtain the results of a medical examination of one of the alleged victims by a clinic in Belgium, which found no sign of sexual abuse. | |
| “That will be part of the evidence for our appeal,” he told a news conference. | |
| Supreme Court spokesman Suhadi said a three-member panel of judges also ordered the teachers, who were convicted of violating the 2007 Child Protection Law, to each pay a fine of $7,440 or serve six more months in jail. | |
| Canada and the United States have both expressed shock at the Supreme Court decision. | |
| Bantleman, who surrendered to authorities in Bali, was taken Friday to Cipinang Prison, the same prison in eastern Jakarta where Tjiong was placed Thursday. | |
| His wife, Tracy, described the verdict as “inhuman, ridiculous and absurd.” | |
| “Neil and Fredy are honorable men, they are innocent. The Supreme Court’s decision is shocking,” she said, sobbing. | |
| “Do you know what is like to accompany your husband who is innocent ... to willingly come back to prison? It is a double nightmare. It’s the cruelest thing,” she said. | |
| Bantleman and Tjiong were arrested in July 2014 following allegations by the parents of a 6-year-old student that he had been sodomized. | |
| Four male janitors at the school were sentenced to eight years in prison in that case and a woman received a seven-year 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 the 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. |