Syrian bank robber allowed to stay in Britain due to ECHR rules

Robert Jenrickthe former immigration minister and Tory leadership candidate, said this is further evidence that Britain must leave the ECHR.

“This man lied his way into our country and then lied for years before deciding to reveal his true identity. And that only came after he tried to rob a bank at gunpoint. We are a joke,” Mr Jenrick said.

“Dangerous criminals like this man must be thrown out and the fact that the ECtHR is protecting them is a shame. We can guarantee people’s rights with our own laws and stop them from protecting foreign robbers, rapists and murderers. This cannot be controversial – we must leave the ECHR. No more excuses.”

False identity

The Syrian was arrested by police in 2006, four years after entering Britain, when he was caught trying to rob a bank.

He gave police a false name, nationality and date of birth before being tried at Kingston Crown Court a year later.

He was sentenced to ten years in prison for theft and two years for weapons possession.

While in prison he tried that apply for asylum use of a false identity. He finally revealed his true identity in 2011 when, while still in prison, he applied for a voluntary return scheme to Syria.

He withdrew his asylum application, but when confronted with a signed deportation order, he resubmitted his asylum application.

No regrets

At the outbreak of the civil war in Syria, he was granted three consecutive periods of discretionary leave, the last of which expired in November 2019 when he was again served with the deportation order.

He successfully challenged the deportation at a first and a higher tribunal on the grounds that he would face persecution if he returned to Syria, even though the Ministry of Interior claimed that there was no such risk to him in Damascus.

The Home Office said he had shown no remorse for the attack, was not a credible witness and still posed a danger to the public, although the court was told he was employed and had committed no further offenses since the attempt to bank robbery and that he accommodation.

The decision follows a series of similar recent cases, including an Albanian wanted for murder in his home country and another who sneaked back to Britain after deportation and won the right to live in Britain under the ECHR to stay.