YANGON, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- American citizen John William Yettaw, who was recently sentenced by a Myanmar district court to serve seven years' rigorous imprisonment, was released and deported by the government Sunday and left the country in the afternoon along with Democrat Senator of the United States Jim Webb who concluded his three-day visit to Myanmar.

Yettaw was convicted by the court on charge of entering into Aung San Suu Kyi's restricted lake-side residence for three days in early May.

The release was secured through efforts made by Webb who met with Myanmar top leader Senior-General Than Shwe, Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, in Nay Pyi Taw Saturday.

Webb, Chairman of the East Asian and Pacific Affairs Subcommittee of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, arrived in Myanmar on Friday on a three-day visit as part of his two-week tour to five Southeast Asian nations at the invitation ofMyanmar Foreign Minister U Nyan Win.

The visit came days after a Myanmar district sentenced on Aug. 11 on the 54-year-old epilepsy-suffering American Yettaw, along with Aung San Suu Kyi, to the seven years' rigorous imprisonment.