N.B. farmer returns from Lebanon jail
Tepper reunites with family at Ottawa airport
OTTAWA— After more than a year in a Lebanese jail, Henk Tepper is finally home.
The New Brunswick potato farmer looked drained but otherwise none the worse for wear as he was reunited with his family Saturday afternoon at the Ottawa airport.
“I’m happy to be home,” he told a throng of reporters as he left the customs area. He said little else during a makeshift news conference outside an airport lounge, where he had spent his first hour back home with family members. His lawyers asked reporters for privacy, and said they would have more to say on Monday. Tepper, who is in his mid-40s and from Drummond, N.B., has been in custody in Beirut since March 23 last year. He was picked up on an international arrest warrant on allegations he exported rotten potatoes to Algeria in 2007 and forged export documents. A source close to Tepper says an an Interpol red notice issued by Algeria remains in effect and it says he could face up to five years in prison if convicted. Tepper has been in a legal limbo because he was being held by the Lebanese government, which doesn’t have an extradition treaty with Algeria, which also alleges that Tepper forged documents related to the export of potatoes from Quebec and Prince Edward Island. Tepper’s lawyers have denied the allegations, saying the potatoes were inspected in Canada before shipment and met Algerian standards. Over the past year, Tepper’s lawyers and family have expressed concerns about his deteriorating health. A number of public appeals and meetings were held to push for his return home, and Ottawa was criticized for not doing enough.
Diane Ablonczy, Canada’s minister of state for foreign affairs, issued a statement Saturday that says the federal government has been working behind the scenes to get Tepper released.
The family owns Tobique Farms in Drummond, reported to be one of the largest potato producers in the province.