UK Court Clears Iranian Asylum Seeker of Smuggling

London: An Iranian asylum seeker jailed on smuggling charges for helping to direct a vessel carrying migrants across the English Channel has been cleared of all charges at a retrial after spending 17 months in jail. Fouad Kakaei, 31, was rescued by British border enforcement officials in July 2019 while crossing to the UK from France in a crowded dinghy with several others. He was then deported to Denmark before making his way back to the French coast and making a second crossing attempt in December that year.

He was sentenced to two years and two months in jail in January 2021 after admitting to British authorities that he had actively commandeered the vessel because he “didn’t want to die at sea.” The court of appeal overturned his verdict in March. Kakaei’s lawyers argued at his retrial 14th May, that it was wrong to have found him guilty of breaking immigration laws because he was hoping to claim asylum via being rescued at sea. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has been challenged by charities over its decision to prosecute migrants guiding vessels from France to England, with campaigners arguing that the legal action could be linked to political pressure.

Read more: Arab News, https://is.gd/ibEbdW