The convicts covered themselves with religious tattoos and claimed they could not be deported because they had converted to Christianity.
Many successfully argued that if they returned to their home country, their conversion would result in “torture.”
In one case, an Iranian pedophile who was described as a “danger to the community” claimed he could not be deported because he had a tattoo of a cross.
The criminal, known as MM, was baptized just 11 days before filing his final appeal to remain in the UK.
Migrants covered themselves in religious tattoos and converted to Christianity to try to avoid deportation (file photo)
Getty
Last year, an immigration judge rejected his request, saying that by failing to address “destitution” it was obvious he was a criminal.
However, a more senior judge later said the ruling was a “totally inappropriate analysis” of the pedophile’s “relationship with God.”
In another case, a Bangladeshi man who murdered his wife was able to avoid deportation by claiming that because of his conversion to Christianity, he would be at risk in his predominantly Muslim country.
These two criminals represent only two of the 300 migrants who have appealed against their deportation due to their conversion to Christianity.
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Even if many of them fail to convince judges of the authenticity of their conversion, their appeals significantly delay their deportation, according to the Times’ findings.
Since the start of 2023, 28 cases have been heard before the Upper Tribunal in which applicants cite conversion to Christianity as a reason against their deportation.
Of these, seven appeals were approved, 13 were rejected and the judge ordered a new hearing in eight cases.
A migrant admitted to mistakenly attending a synagogue for more than a month, believing it to be a church.
Abdul Ezedi converted to Christianity before his asylum application was approvedmetropolitan police
A court judge doubted whether a plaintiff was “attracted to Christianity because it met a deep spiritual need” because he said “being a Christian means freedom and you can drink alcohol and be with girls.”
The findings follow the revelation that Abdoul Ezedisuspected of attacking a 31-year-old mother and her two children with a “corrosive alkaline substance”, was granted asylum in the UK after claiming he had converted to Christianity.
Elsewhere, as much as 40 asylum seekers on Bibby Stockholm barge reportedly convert to Christianity.
Of the 300 migrants aboard the Bibby Stockholm barge, nearly one in seven attend churches under the supervision of local religious leaders, a church elder told the BBC.
