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... "Welcome home, Rihan. We're so proud that you're back, so proud that you call Cheshire home, so proud that you call Connecticut home," Gov. Ned Lamont said during an event held inside Cheshire Town Hall Friday afternoon to mark his return.

A senior set to graduate in June, Rihan returned to Connecticut on Tuesday and went back to school Wednesday, where he received a warm reception from classmates, officials said.

Rihan stood off to the side during the news conference and did not speak. One of his attorneys said he is still shaken from the ordeal. Attorneys have asked that he and family members not be identified beyond their first name due to safety concerns for family in Afghanistan, where they immigrated from. ...

Petersen said the federal judge who granted Rihan's bond also cited letters from his high school teachers, describing "his ties to the community and the esteem in which is community held him."

Susan Chasen, a Cheshire High School chemistry teacher who wrote a letter on Rihan's behalf, described her former student as hardworking and "always polite and respectful."

After arriving in Cheshire in 2024, she said, Rihan "showed so much perseverance as he worked to not only learn the chemistry concepts, but also to improve his use of the English language and to learn the culture of an American high school."

Chasen said his ability to overcome "so many challenges" inspired her to step out of her own comfort zone and learn new skills.

"Rihan is a role model in our community," she said. "He has shown that hard work and kindness can lead to success in the class room and in life." ...