Australian trafficker Corby deported from Bali amid media storm
Corby, now 39, maintained her innocence, insisting the drugs had been planted, and received much support back home where some believed she had been set up or was the victim of a supposedly corrupt justice system.
Her final day on the Indonesian island was a blaze of media attention, as she was hustled out of a villa with her face hidden under a scarf, and then chased by a huge pack of journalists across Bali before boarding a flight home.
In a final twist, she managed to outsmart the media by heading back to Brisbane on a different flight than had been widely expected, apparently to avoid travelling with a large contingent of reporters.
The day of drama was a fitting finale to a story that has fascinated the Australian public like few others in recent times.
The beauty school dropout was arrested in 2014 at Bali airport with several kilos of hashish stashed in her surfing gear, and was jailed the following year for 20 years.
Corby, now 39, maintained her innocence, insisting the drugs had been planted, and received much support back home where some believed she had been set up or was the victim of a supposedly corrupt justice system.
Her sentence was cut due to regular remissions and after an appeal to the president, and she served nine years behind bars. She was released early in 2014 but was required to remain on Bali for three years under the conditions of her parole.
Australian media descended on Bali en masse ahead of her homecoming, camping out outside her villa for several days as Corby did her best to stay hidden.
‘Ganja Queen’
Hundreds of police were deployed to provide security on Saturday. Corby was led out of the villa in the afternoon, hidden under the scarf and wearing a pair of sunglasses, before being whisked away in a convoy that included armoured vehicles.
The view of the Australian has been starkly different in Indonesia than in her homeland. She was dubbed “The Ganja Queen” by the local press and received little sympathy from the public, who largely support the country’s tough anti-drugs laws.
Bali officials have been forced to defend the huge security deployment for her departure, with corrections chief Surung Pasaribu saying the Australian consulate on the island had requested help to ensure it went smoothly.
“We will pray for her that she will repent, God wants humans to return to the right path,” he said.
She headed first to government offices to fill out documents. “Good bye to this parole paperwork,” she posted on her Instagram account, which already had over 67,000 followers just a few hours after being set up.
Corby then headed to the airport, pursued all the way by a massive Australian press pack, who broadcast every moment live to the millions who have followed her case for years.
But then she boarded a flight on airline Malindo Air at 10:00 pm (1400 GMT). She had been widely expected to fly on a Virgin service leaving 10 minutes later. Australian journalists had been booked to travel on the Virgin flight, Australian media reported.
Head of the Bali justice and human rights office, Ida Bagus Adnyana, confirmed Corby’s departure: “At 10:00 pm exactly, the Malindo Air plane took off.”
He also shed some light on Corby’s last-minute change of plans: “An hour before the immigration process, she told officials she would not travel on Virgin and would take Malindo instead. She paid for the tickets.”
Despite the controversy surrounding her case, Indonesia has stepped up its campaign against drug use since she was jailed.
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Authorities have embarked on a campaign of executions targeting drug smugglers, and in April 2015 put to death two Australians along with six other foreigners.