BREAKING NEWS Bombshell update four years after Aussie father-of-three and engineer was thrown in Iraqi jail
A Sydney father-of-three and engineer detained in an Iraqi prison for nearly four years has been released on bail in a major breakthrough.
Robert Pether has been locked up in a heavily-guarded facility on the outskirts of Baghdad for the better part of half a decade after being arrested while helping the war-ravaged country rebuild on April 7, 2021.
Pether had travelled to Baghdad to discuss a multimillion-dollar blowout in the cost of building the new headquarters for the government-owned Central Bank of Iraq.
He was charged with deception and was sentenced to five years behind bars and a $16million fine. Pether has always maintained his innocence.
The mechanical engineer claimed he was unlawfully held captive as part of a sinister plot to extort millions of dollars from his boss's construction company.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong has welcomed his release.
'His case has been raised with Iraqi authorities over 200 times, including at the highest level by the Prime Minister and myself,' Senator Wong said.
'I want to thank Australian officials for their tireless work on Mr Pether's case, including Australia's special envoy who travelled to Iraq in recent weeks to negotiate for this outcome.'
The update comes after Mr Pether begged for help in a letter to Daily Mail Australia.
Mr Pether said he was terrified he would die in prison and never see his wife, Desree, or children, Flynn, 20, Oscar, 18, and Nala, 11, again.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Harrowing new details revealed in autopsy report after grandma accused of murdering two grandsons in their rural home
TWO children found dead in their rural home were allegedly drugged before being smothered, an autopsy has revealed. Aussie brothers Max, 6, and Sam Johnson, 7, were found dead on May 5 - with their grandma arrested at the scene. 2 2 A post-mortem examination has found traces of prescription drugs in the boys' systems, according to the Daily Telegraph. Police allege their grandma, Kathleen Heggs, 66, gave her grandsons the medications before suffocating them with a pillow. Heggs allegedly sent a text to authorities saying the two boys were dead and that she planned to take her own life. When cops arrived at the scene, they found the boys dead in separate rooms and Heggs with self-inflicted injuries. She was arrested and taken to the mental health unit at Orange Hospital before being transferred into custody. On May 21, Heggs was charged with two counts of domestic violence murder. The siblings were reportedly sleeping when the alleged murders occurred. Heggs, the sole carer for the boys, moved with them over a year ago to a home on the outskirts of Coonabarabran in rural New South Wales. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the move was prompted after the woman "witnessed an incident involving her family too graphic to publish details of, and became known to police as a victim of crime". The boys' dad told the Daily Telegraph that he and his partner had trusted Heggs to care for the children, as they were both struggling with mental health issues. The couple had not seen the children for five years before their deaths. "This is not how we were meant to get them back," he said. "We are completely broken... but those boys deserve a good send off, and that's what we are going to give them." The boys will be buried wearing their karate uniforms, each with a yellow belt they were due to earn the same week their lives were tragically cut short. A family friend, who has a son the same age as the boys, said he would see them at karate lessons, football matches and school. He said there were no clear signs the family was struggling, describing Heggs as a "beautiful lady" and the boys as "cute little kids, full of energy". He said locals have been really hard-hit by the news. "This is a tragedy, and it's affecting so many. Petty crime happens and that, but it's a very safe community, we don't have problems like the cities." It comes as investigators found human remains on Friday in the search for Aussie teen Pheobe Bishop, who vanished three weeks ago. Pheobe's two housemates James Wood and Tanika Bromley were charged with murder on Thursday, along with two counts of interfering with a corpse.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Kanye West's wife Bianca Censori sets up her own companies in mystery solo venture
is reportedly stepping out from Kanye West 's shadow as she set up her own business in a mysterious solo move. The 30-year-old architect has launched her own company in the U.S., Bianca Censori Inc., according to the US Sun, with the disgraced rapper, 47, listed as its director. She has also reportedly registered a firm in Australia - simply named Bianca Censori - which operates out of the Melbourne suburb of Alphington, where her parents live, with hints that the business may be a cosmetics brand. has reached out to a representative for Bianca and Kanye for comment. The new companies appear to be the first signs of Bianca taking the lead on a project, as she reportedly registered her eponymous brand in California in May. She previously worked as an architect for his Yeezy brand beginning in 2020, and they married two years later. Although she is listed as the CEO and secretary for Bianca Censori Inc., Kanye is reportedly listed on the registration as a director of the company. He's also connected via his attorney, Manoj Shah, who is providing legal services for Bianca's company. So far, there are few details about exactly what Bianca plans to do with the companies, however, the paperwork reportedly indicates that Hussein Lalani is working as the chief financial officer, and Lalani is known for promoting cosmetics. He is the founder of the skincare company Zensa, which offers microblading products, home tattoo kits, and accompanying numbing creams. Hussein Lalani reportedly advertised that Kanye planned to release the cryptocurrency 'meme coin' $YZY, which was initially described as a way to pay on the rapper's Yeezy website. Despite Hussein's press release, which indicated the crytopcurrency would begin selling on February 27, the release was inexplicably delayed inevitably. Lalani allegedly came into the famous couple's orbit after he met the couple at the West Hollywood condo they lived in last year. He's also reportedly listed on the corporate statement of information at the same address as the condo building.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Bombshell new details revealed after two young boys found dead in their grandmother's house - rocking a regional Aussie community to its core
Two young boys found dead on a country NSW property had allegedly been drugged before they were smothered, an autopsy has revealed. Max and Sam Johnson, aged six and seven, were discovered in their Coonabarabran home, in northwest NSW, on May 5. Their grandmother Kathleen Heggs, 66, was subsequently charged with their murder. Police have now revealed a post-mortem examination carried out on the two boys' bodies found traces of a prescription medication in their systems, according to the Daily Telegraph. Police will allege Ms Heggs gave her young grandsons the medications before suffocating them with a pillow. The brothers were asleep in separate bedrooms of Ms Heggs' rural property when the alleged murders took place. Max and Sam's biological parents Troy and Samantha Johnson are making final plans for their sons' funeral this week, which is to be held in Port Stephens. Ms Heggs was the sole carer for the two boys and they had moved from near Port Stephens to Coonabarabran about a year ago. Mr and Mrs Johnson had not seen the boys for five years prior to their deaths. The boys' father revealed he and his wife decided to let Ms Heggs take care of their sons as they had been struggling with mental health issues. 'This is not how we were meant to get them back,' Mr Johnson said. 'We are completely broken... but those boys deserve a good send off, and that's what we are going to give them.' Mr Johnson said he was grateful to Coonabarabran locals for sharing their happy memories of his sons. The boys will be buried in their karate uniforms, along with the yellow belts they were set to receive the week they were allegedly killed. Last month, police raced to the Coonabarabran property after Ms Heggs allegedly sent a text message to the boys' school to say her the two boys were dead and she intended to take her own life. After arriving at the farm, police forced their way into the home and found the boys' bodies in different rooms and the woman suffering self-inflicted injuries. Ms Heggs was treated in a mental health facility for several days following the boys' death before being charged with two counts of murder. Tragically, the devastated grandfather of the boys told Daily Mail Australia he only discovered that his grandsons were dead when he heard it on the news. 'I had to find out off the news about what happened to them,' he said. He also said he was upset pictures of the boys had been circulated through the media. 'The photos should never have been released - because they were minors - that was wrong and it has been very upsetting.' Ms Heggs has not entered pleas and she will front court on July 10. NSW Police have been contacted for comment.
