A Somali criminal seeking asylum in the UK has avoided deportation after a judge ruled that returning him to his home country would cause him too much "stress."
The unnamed asylum seeker, who has been dependent on alcohol since 2006, would suffer stress if deported to Somalia, which would worsen his mental health.
Judges in the upper immigration tribunal ruled that deportation would breach article three of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects against persecution and inhumane treatment.
The Home Office had argued the man, jailed for unspecified crimes, could receive necessary medication and treatment in Somalia for his schizophrenia and auditory hallucinations.
The Somali Man is allowed to stay
PAThe Upper Tier Tribunal was told the man moved to the UK in 1999 when he was 29, claiming his family faced persecution due to their clan membership.
He was accompanied by his support worker during the hearing and was described as having a "high level of vulnerability" and "complex needs" with long-standing health problems.
"The severity of his mental health problems is closely linked to his stress levels and use of alcohol," the tribunal noted.
The man has been "significantly dependent" on alcohol since 2006 and has served prison time for crimes that were not specified in court papers.
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The Judge said the man could not expect a life in Somalia
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Lawyers representing the asylum seeker argued he would have "no real prospect" of making a living in Mogadishu and would receive only limited financial support. They claimed he had previously been "targeted for money" by others after they learned he received disability benefits.
His legal team insisted the man required "24-hour support and monitoring" that his clan could not provide, and he would have to pay for antipsychotic medication.
The Home Office countered that Somalia recognises schizophrenia as a mental health disorder and has "some psychiatrists".
They argued a £750 payment through the Facilitated Return Scheme would enable him to access medication and support in his homeland.
Deputy Upper Tribunal Judge Ian Jarvis concluded: "I conclude that the weight of the evidence before the Tribunal indicates that the [man] will very quickly become noncompliant with his medication... without the 24/7 support and monitoring which he currently receives in the United Kingdom."
The judge upheld the asylum seeker's appeal, ruling his mental health would "seriously deteriorate" if returned to Somalia.
The man's lawyers had warned he would "very quickly decline" mentally if deported, potentially falling into "destitution" and ending up in an internally displaced person camp with "dire conditions" and risk of violence.
The case, disclosed in court papers, is the latest example where failed asylum seekers or convicted foreign criminals have attempted to halt deportations by claiming human rights breaches. There are currently a record 41,987 outstanding immigration appeals, largely on human rights grounds.
