Swedish court rules rape by Eritrean refugee ‘not serious enough’ for deportation

New Delhi: A Swedish court’s decision to not deport an Eritrean refugee convicted of raping a teenage girl has drawn widespread condemnation, with Donald Trump Jr, son of US President Donald Trump, expressing outrage over the ruling. The Court of Appeal for Upper Norrland decided that the convict, identified as Yazied Mohamed, would not face deportation after completing his three-year prison sentence. The court cited the "duration of the incident” as a reason, ruling that the rape was "not serious enough” to justify deportation.

According to the court’s verdict, "Rape is, in many cases, considered an exceptionally serious offense that could lead to the deportation of a refugee, but an assessment must be made based on all circumstances in the individual case.”

It further explained, "Given the nature and duration of the offense in question, the Court of Appeal finds that while the crime is serious, it does not constitute an exceptionally serious offense that would warrant a deportation order for Yazied Mohamed. The request for deportation is therefore rejected.”

The assault occurred on September 1 last year, when Meya, a 16-year-old girl, was walking through a pedestrian tunnel after missing her bus home from work at McDonald’s. She was attacked and raped by the then 18-year-old Mohamed.

Reacting to the ruling, Trump Jr posted on X, "What the hell is going on in this world? Europe is at 'Well, it was only a short rape' so we won't get rid of a total piece of shit in our country. WTF? Wake up people, we are virtue signaling ourselves into extinction! His comments reflect the Trump administration and the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement’s hardline stance on immigration. President Trump has consistently maintained that foreign nationals convicted of violent or sexual crimes should be deported without delay.