Rawson walks free from Bali prison
A Victorian man has been released from a Bali jail, four months after a holiday turned into a stay behind bars.
Ricky Shane Rawson looked relieved as he walked out of Kerobokan jail this afternoon, and headed to the airport hoping to get a flight to Melbourne.
The 45-year-old had been facing up to 12 years in one of Bali's most notorious prisons after police found $30 worth of Amphetamine when they raided his villa in the upmarket area of Seminyak in May of this year.
Last week, judges in the Denpasar District Court sentenced Rawson to just four months behind bars, finding him guilty of drug use instead of possession, which carries a much tougher penalty.
Taking into account the time he had already served behind bars, Rawson was released today.
Rawson had admitted to buying the methamphetamine - commonly known in Australia as speed and in Indonesia as shabu shabu - for the equivalent of about $30 from a woman at the Sky Garden nightclub in Kuta, a popular haunt among partygoers.
However, he denied using the drugs for partying, telling the court he used speed about three to four times a month to treat depression.
