Mary Jane Veloso to fly back to the Philippines on Dec. 18: Indonesian official
Mary Jane Veloso, an overseas Filipino worker sentenced to death in Indonesia, is coming home to the Philippines on Wednesday, Dec. 18.
The news was confirmed by Indonesia's Deputy Coordinator of Immigration and Corrections Nyoman Gede Surya Mataram in a press conference on Monday, Dec. 16.
According to the ABS-CBN News report, officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) will fly to Jakarta on the evening of Dec. 16 to finalize the transfer for Veloso.
This came a month after the Indonesian government said it would repatriate Veloso. Early in December, the Philippines agreed to Indonesia’s proposed transfer procedures and terms, including respecting the Indonesian court's sentencing of Veloso and her status as prisoner, and that she will be banned from coming to the country.
Veloso was a domestic helper and mother of two who was arrested in Yogyakarta in 2010 after being found with 2.6 kg of heroin concealed in a suitcase. She received a last-minute reprieve from execution in 2015 after Philippine officials asked Joko Widodo, then Indonesian president, to allow her to testify against members of a human and drug smuggling ring.
As per the Reuters report, she will serve the remainder of her sentence in the Philippines.
