South African anti-apartheid cleric Allan Boesak was released on parole on Tuesday after serving one year of a three-year prison term for theft and fraud involving donor funds.
"It's wonderful to be back...I cannot tell you how I feel," the South African Press Association (SAPA) quoted Boesak as telling reporters on his release.
Boesak, 53, was greeted by a crowd of family members, ruling African National Congress (ANC) politicians and church ministers who had waited for his release outside the parole board offices in the wine producing area of Stellenbosch.
Boesak was jailed last May after the Supreme Court of Appeal upheld his conviction on two counts of fraud and theft involving donor funds from Sweden, Denmark and Norway.
His sentence was cut by 10 months last October for good behavior, which allowed him to become eligible for parole.
Boesak has always maintained his innocence.
The flamboyant cleric was a prominent anti-apartheid campaigner during the 1980s but his image was tarnished by love affairs and a lifestyle that included fast cars and a house in one of Cape Town's plushest suburbs -- CAPE TOWN (Reuters)
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