FORMER HOSTAGE BOYLE RELEASED ON BAIL

Former overseas hostage Joshua Boyle, who faces several assault charges, will be released on bail with strict conditions. Justice Robert Wadden handed down the decision Friday in Ontario court following a two-day proceeding. Boyle was arrested by Ottawa police in December and charged with assault, sexual assault, unlawful confinement and causing someone to take a noxious substance. The charges involve two alleged victims, but a court order prohibits the publication of any details that might identify them or any witnesses. Boyle and his American wife, Caitlan Coleman, were taken hostage in 2012 by a Taliban-linked group in Afghanistan. The couple — along with the three children they had during their five years in captivity — were freed by Pakistani forces last October.