Renae Lawrence was part of the infamous Bali Nine group caught attempting to smuggle over 8kg of heroin from Bali to Australia in April 2005. She was originally sentenced to life in prison, which was successfully appealed to be 20 years, then reduced last year. She’s now served more than 12 years in prison in Indonesia.
According to The Guardian, Lawrence is expected to be deported to Australia on November 21, but when she touches down in Sydney she is set to face arrest for outstanding warrant.
New South Wales Police have reportedly confirmed that Lawrence has two outstanding warrants for offences that include stealing a motor vehicle, driving unlicensed, speeding and failure to comply with police direction. Those crimes date back to June 2005 when Gosford local court issued the offences.
While this is not a warm welcome, Renae Lawrence is the first of the Bali Nine to be released. In 2015 An Indonesian firing squad executed the Bali Nine ringleaders, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, and Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen, another member of the group, died of cancer while serving out his life term.
The remaining five people associated with the Bali Nine smuggling arrest –Su Yi Chen, Michael Czugaj, Matthew Norman, Scott Rush and Martin Stephens – all remain in Indonesia serving life in Prison.