A British pilot who was jailed in Africa on suspicion of mass murder after discovering the victims of an apparent massacre has been cleared of all charges.
David Simpson was arrested almost five months ago in the Central African Republic after he stumbled upon a gruesome scene in the bush involving 13 bodies, and informed local officials.
The 24-year-old was held in Ngaragba Central Prison in the capital, Bangui, before being put under temporary house arrest after the jail was stormed by rioters and destroyed earlier this month.
Mr Simpson, who worked as a manager and pilot for a Swedish safari company, is now waiting for official permission to fly back to family home in North Yorkshire after charges were dropped against him.
Despite his ordeal he hopes to return to Africa.
"I feel I belong in the African bush," the Briton told The Mail on Sunday.
"I love my job and I want to come back here and get on with it.
"But for now, I'm looking forward to some summer evenings in England with my friends."
Mr Simpson was released on medical grounds last week after a malaria attack before being officially told he was a free man by the presiding judge in the case.
He is now waiting for the authorities to return his passport and for official paperwork to be completed before he can return home.
The pilot, whose family runs a pheasant farm in Gillamoor, North Yorkshire, found the bodies in March as he was going through dense forest in Bakouma, an area in the south-east of the country.
They were tied together and mutilated.
He said he was astonished when the authorities thought he might have been involved.
Many commentators have linked the killings to supporters of Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The Foreign Office said it was not yet aware of the developments in the case.