Cuba releases Canadian executive from jail after three years

HAVANA, CUBA - MARCH 26: A billboard celebrating some of Cuba's revolutionary heroes (L-R) Che Guevara, Camilo Cienfuegos and Julio Mella , hangs on a wall on the day that Pope Benedict XVI is scheduled to arrive in Cuba on March 26, 2012 in Havana, Cuba. Pope Benedict, who will be arriving from Mexico, will conduct a mass in the city of Santiago de Cuba first followed by a mass in Havana before leaving on the March 28.Tensions are high in Cuba between some dissidents and the government as activists hope the international exposure of the Papal visit will result in renewed attention to their struggle (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) (2012 Getty Images)

HAVANA (AP) – A Canadian automobile executive imprisoned in Cuba on corruption charges for more than three years was released Saturday after Cuba's government ended a case that it called a demonstration of the fight against bribery and critics said was a warning against doing business here.

Cy Tokmakijian's case was seen by some as a loose end in the U.S.-Cuba deal late last year that led to the release of three Cuban intelligence agents in exchange for U.S. contractor Alan Gross and CIA spy Rolando Sarraff Trujillo. Canada and the Vatican hosted key talks in 18 months of negotiations leading up to the exchange, which was accompanied by a joint move to restore full diplomatic relations between the countries.

Canadian officials declined to comment on whether the deal boosted to their efforts to win freedom for Tokmakjian, who was serving 15 years after his arrest in a 2011 anti-graft drive that swept up Cuban officials and foreign business executives from at least five nations.

Tokmakjian, 74, was sentenced in September and his representatives said that firm managers Claudio Vetere and Marco Puche got shorter sentences. Their whereabouts were not immediately clear Saturday.

Tokmakjian family says his prosecution was an excuse to seize his Ontario-based Tokmakjian Group's $100 million in assets in Cuba. Some potential investors in Cuba said the case made them wary of Cuba's drive to draw billions in new foreign investment.

"Cy returns home in good health, fantastic sprits, and is looking forward to spending time with his family," lawyer Barry Papazian said.

Foreign business people have long considered payoffs ranging from a free meal to cash deposits in overseas accounts to be an unavoidable cost of doing business in Cuba. They have skeptically greeted government assertions that rooting out rampant corruption is among the country's highest priorities.