Robert Pether had been working as a mechanical engineer on rebuilding the Iraqi Central Bank when he was arrested along with a colleague from CME Consulting, the Dubai-based company they were working for.

Mr Pether, who is an Australian citizen, has been in prison in Iraq since April 2021, after he was arrested on fraud charges following a contractual dispute involving his employer that arose out of the building of a new Central Bank building in Baghdad in Iraq.

The Australian national remains there for the moment as he is under a travel ban and cannot return home, it is understood.