A Nigerian man convicted of rape as a teenager has avoided deportation from the UK after the European Court of Human Rights ruled in his favour. The man, identified only as AA, was 15 when he raped a 13-year-old girl in 2002. He spent four years in a Young Offenders Institution.
AA arrived in the UK in 2000 to join his mother, a nurse. While he was in custody, his mother was granted permanent residence, which extended to her children. After his release, he went to university, earned a master's degree, and began working for a London local authority.
The Home Office issued a deportation order in 2004, but AA argued that deportation would breach his right to family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The Strasbourg court agreed, stating that his deportation would be disproportionate given his rehabilitation and low risk of reoffending.
A UK Border Agency spokesman expressed disappointment, saying the government is determined to remove foreign criminals. However, the Aire Centre, which represented AA, welcomed the judgment, highlighting its recognition of the rehabilitation of juvenile offenders.
