A Lebanese prosecutor now has the final piece of documentation needed to rule on whether Henk Tepper will be released from his Beirut jail cell into a lawyer's custody.

Tepper's team of lawyers filed a motion several months ago to release Tepper from detention, reported Times & Transcript.

If the motion is granted, Tepper would still not be able to leave Lebanon until a final ruling concerning his extradition to Algeria, but would be freed from the jail he has been held in since March.

"I received notice this morning that the letter that the prosecutor has been waiting for from Interpol is now in his hands," said James Mockler, yesterday. "We are simply awaiting his decision now as to whether or not he will release Henk to a house arrest situation."

Tepper, 44, has been held in Lebanon since March 23, accused under an international arrest warrant of selling bad potatoes to Algeria.

He is currently detained in Lebanon's Palais de Justice, where he shares a cell with up to 28 other detainees or inmates at a time, according to his lawyer.