BEIJING: China said on Thursday that two U.S. citizens who were placed under criminal detention in late September have been released on bail and are awaiting trial on charges of illegally moving people across country borders.

Alyssa Peterson and Jacob Harlan, who worked for U.S.-based education company China Horizons, were detained in eastern China late last month and have been in contact with U.S. officials, said foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang.

China Horizons said in a social media post last week that the company has been operating in the country for 17 years and that it believed the charges were “bogus”.

(Agencies)