Schapelle Corby returns to Australia 13 years after Bali drugs conviction

Schapelle Corby has arrived back in Australia for the first time in 13 years after leaving her Bali home amid intense media scrutiny with a heavy police escort, then arriving at Brisbane airport on a flight she switched to at the last minute.

Corby left her villa in Kuta on Saturday evening and visited her parole office, where she signed her final paperwork and went to Denpasar airport to fly to Brisbane. She arrived in Australia early on Sunday morning.

The 39-year-old, accompanied by her sister Mercedes, arrived in Brisbane on a Malindo Air flight that landed at 5.09am on Sunday after being deported from Bali 12 and a half years after she was caught with 4.1kg of marijuana in her boogie board bag.

She left the Brisbane airport grounds without being seen by the media. A member of her security team read a statement on behalf of the family, asking for privacy but also thanking supporters.

“To all those in Australia and to all of those in Bali, who were there throughout the difficult journey, your support has not gone unnoticed,” the statement said.

“To each and every one of you, you are appreciated.”

The family said the focus was no on helping Schapelle adjust to life back in Australia. “The priority of our focus will now be on healing and moving forward,” the statement said.

“In the spirit of humility and in the spirit of dignity, we ask all parties to show respect for the family’s privacy during this time.”

Corby’s security team also made a last-minute switch to put her on the Malindo Air flight. She had been expected to travel on a Virgin flight that left around the same time. A media contingent of up to 40 people had booked on to the Virgin flight.

The intensity of the Australian media’s focus on the Corby case continued unabated on her last day in Indonesia, where Corby had remained since first arrested in 2004. Commercial television held live broadcasts to monitor the developments, and a throng of Australian and international media waited outside her Bali home.

Local police reportedly marshalled 275 officers from Kuta and Denpasar to help escort Corby to the airport for her deportation.

Corby, 39, who has consistently maintained she was the unwitting victim of a botched conspiracy, technically completed her sentence at midnight on Saturday.

She remained in her Kuta villa in recent days and was visited by a doctor from Kerobokan prison, who found her to be healthy, according to the ABC and Fairfax.

She was also reportedly visited by her hired bodyguard, who has worked for stars such as Roger Federer and Lady Gaga. The bodyguard, John Mcleod, was engaged to help escort her to the airport safely.

The Corby family, including Schapelle’s sister Mercedes, had requested privacy from the media crews gathered at the home.

A bucket of water was thrown at a Channel Seven cameraman, and Mercedes placed a note on the front door, warning media against trying to film over the villa’s fence.

Corby served nine years in Kerobokan prison following her conviction in 2005, less than half of her original 20-year sentence. She was released in 2014 but was required to remain in Indonesia for another three years to comply with her parole requirements, and has lived in the popular resort area of Kuta.

Her prison sentence was shortened following a number of concessions for good behaviour. She was also granted a five-year reduction in her sentence following an appeal for clemency to then Indonesian president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

It was unclear whether Corby would stay with siblings on the Gold Coast or with her mother in Logan upon her return to Australia.

On Friday the head of Bali’s law and human rights office, Ida Bagus Ketut Adnyana, said the heavy police presence was needed because “it’s not normal, there are too many people”.

He said it was likely she would be taken via a different passage to normal passengers at the airport. “Up to now [she was supposed to use] only normal pathway but if it’s difficult, blocked by reporters and passengers, then there could be some special action in the field,” Adnyana said.