STORY: "CBC doc challenges evidence in case against Canadian teacher Neil Bantleman," by Foreign Affairs reporter Marina Jiminez, published by the Toronto Star on January 8, 2016.
PHOTO CAPTION: "Neil Bantleman was serving his 10-year sentence in Jakarta’s notorious Cipinang maximum security prison. An overcrowded, often dangerous home to convicted drug dealers, murderers and terrorists. And now a school teacher from Canada."
GIST: "New medical evidence revealed by CBC’s the fifth estate
challenges the legitimacy of the case against the Canadian teacher
accused of sexually assaulting three kindergartners at an elite school
in Jakarta, Indonesia. The medical test results, coupled with a lack
of physical evidence, add a further twist to Neil Bantleman’s ordeal, as
he tries to prove his innocence in a court system he believes is biased
against him. “This is a complete miscarriage of justice and we will continue to fight until the truth comes out,” he says in the documentary “Nightmare in Indonesia,” which airs Friday at 9 p.m. Bantleman was sentenced to 10 years in prison in April 2015. The 45-year-old Burlington native is out of prison after an acquittal for technical reasons. He cannot leave Indonesia while the Jakarta prosecutor’s office prepares an appeal. “My husband, Neil, is innocent,” says Tracy Bantleman, his wife and a fellow teacher. The case generated global headlines and heated
condemnation of Indonesia’s justice system, even as the mother of one
of the three alleged victims continues to insist her son was raped by
Bantleman. A teaching assistant named Ferdinant Tjiong, and six janitors
from Jakarta International School — a private institution of 2,400
students, attended by children of foreign diplomats, expatriates and
local elites — were also accused. "They have ignored all evidence in support of my husband," says Tracy Bantleman of Neil Bantleman's ordeal in Indonesia. Tests submitted in Bantleman’s trial by the
mother, who goes by the name Pipit, showed her son had contracted the
herpes virus. These tests, which she said proved the child had been
raped, became crucial evidence in the case against Bantleman. However, at the CBC’s request, Pipit agreed to
have her son retested at a reputable European lab. That test came back
negative, according to Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti, an infectious disease
specialist in Toronto who reviewed the file for the fifth estate. “Beyond a reasonable doubt this child has not
ever been exposed to herpes,” he said. The new test retroactively proves
the test used in court to convict Bantleman was a false positive,
Chakrabarti said.
Pipit, who launched a $125-million lawsuit
against the school, rejects the test results. She remains defiant.
“People can call me crazy or crazy mom. I don’t care. But my son knows. .
. I’m fighting for my son,” she told the fifth estate. She is now living with her son and husband in Europe. The fifth estate reports that police
could find no physical evidence to support Pipit’s son’s testimony that
he was attacked in a secret room near the school’s staff lounge, and
that Bantleman used a magic stone and blue potion to numb him before the
attacks. Police could not find the room, a stone or any evidence of a potion. “The (police) couldn’t find any DNA, fingerprints, or any witnesses to prove the boys were ever inside the teacher’s lounge,” the fifth estate reporter Mark Kelley says.
According to the report, the rape accusations
were met with a mob mentality, as parents became convinced that
something terrible had happened at the school. At first, Pipit accused the janitors — five
men and one woman — of being part of a pedophile ring. She then expanded
her accusations to include Bantleman and the teaching assistant. She took her case public, appearing on a popular true-crime television show. The janitors confessed, but only after they were tortured by police, according to interviews with the fifth estate. They later recanted their confessions.........“They have ignored all evidence in support of my husband,” said Tracy Bantleman. “It is a disgrace.”"
The entire story can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2016/01/08/cbc-doc-challenges-evidence-in-case-against-canadian-teacher-neil-bantleman.html
See "Fifth Estate" web page with video for "Nightmare in Indonesia."..."Neil Bantleman and his wife were in search of adventure when they went to teach at a prestigious private school in Jakarta. But then came the horrifying accusation from a parent who believed her boy had been sexually abused by staff at the school. It set off an never-ending nightmare for the two Canadians. Last April, Neil Bantleman was convicted of sex assault. Though he won on appeal, he now awaits the ruling of Indonesia's top court and prays that one day they will be free to leave Indonesia and put to rest the terrible nightmare."
http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/episodes/2015-2016/nightmare-in-indonesia
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.
The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.
Harold Levy: Publisher;
The Charles Smith Blog.
