The Residence Workplace has been spared an inquest into how an Afghan asylum seeker who posed as a toddler earlier than murdering an aspiring Marine was allowed into Britain.
Tom Roberts, 21, a nightclub DJ, was stabbed within the chest by Afghan Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai exterior a Subway within the early hours of March 12, 2022, when he tried to intervene in a row over an e-scooter.
Abdulrahimzai, who was truly 19, had already murdered two folks in Serbia earlier than being allowed into the UK posing as a 14-year-old orphan.
He was positioned into two secondary colleges in Bournemouth, Dorset, and was expelled from one for carrying a knife at school. Two days earlier than he killed Mr Roberts he was stopped by police for carrying a machete.
Mr Roberts’ household has slammed a coroner’s choice to scrap an inquest into his homicide and so they declare authorities try to ‘sweep it below the carpet’.
Abdulrahimzai had already murdered two folks earlier than being allowed into the UK posing as a 14-year-old orphan
Tom Roberts, 21, (pictured) was stabbed within the chest twice by Afghan Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai
Abdulrahimzai was jailed for 29 years for Mr Roberts’ homicide following a trial at Salisbury Crown Courtroom in January 2023.
It later emerged that he was flagged as ‘vulnerable to terrorism’ by the Residence Workplace’s Forestall anti-terrorism process group in 2021.
Mr Roberts’ household have beforehand accused the Border Drive and Residence Workplace of systematic failures which allowed Abdulrahimzai into the nation.
They’d pinned their hopes on a full inquest into Mr Roberts’ demise to publicly scrutinise the failings and ask questions.
Nonetheless, after quite a lot of pre-inquest overview hearings, senior coroner for Dorset Rachael Griffin has now dominated that there isn’t any want for a full inquest to happen.
Mr Roberts’ household stated they really feel just like the matter was being ‘swept below the carpet’ and accused the authorities of a cover-up.
They declare that if immigration officers had carried out correct checks on Abdulrahimzai after he arrived on a ferry in Poole, Mr Roberts would nonetheless be alive right this moment.
Dolores Wallace-Roberts, Mr Robert’s mom, stated: ‘I’m very disillusioned by the coroner’s choice to not resume the investigation into his demise. It’s unfair.
Armed police arresting Abdulrahimzai for murdering Mr Roberts in Bournemouth
The asylum seeker, seen right here on bus CCTV, claimed his mother and father have been killed by the Taliban
‘The Residence Workplace do not wish to interact with us. They’re accountable and there’s negligence there however they simply block any makes an attempt to search out out extra.
‘I’ve very severe issues about how Border Drive checks the id of these arriving in England and whether or not they’re criminals and the way BCP Council checks the ages of these claiming to be youngsters.
‘I’ve issues in regards to the response of Dorset Police to a report of somebody carrying a machete in a public place and the failure of the authorities to examine and share data, which permits the established order to proceed.
‘The whole lot is improper on this nation and it’ll proceed to occur once more.’
Mr Roberts’ step-father, Peter Wallace, stated: ‘It looks like the whole lot is being swept below the carpet and it’s a little bit of a cover-up.
‘The Residence Workplace has by no means apologised to me as a result of in the event that they did they must admit their failings.
‘It’s disappointing that classes is not going to be learnt about their full failures, however they do not need them out within the open.’
Mrs Griffin dominated the inquest didn’t meet the factors for Article 2 of the European Conference of Human Rights, that the state knew or must have identified of an instantaneous danger to a person’s life they must take cheap steps to cope with that danger.
The Afghan nationwide was convicted of the homicide of aspiring Royal Marine Thomas Roberts (pictured), 21, exterior a Subway sandwich store in Bournemouth
The coroner stated Mr Roberts and Abdulrahimzai have been strangers and though there was an ‘rising sample of violent behaviour and a danger to others of hurt’, on the time of the homicide the unlawful immigrant had not used a knife in an act of violence nor made any threats to kill since arriving within the UK in December 2019.
However the catalogue of errors and missed alternatives that may have revealed Abdulrahimzai’s murderous previous make for damning studying.
Outlining the info, Mrs Griffin stated Abdulrahimzai arrived within the UK on December 26, 2019, hidden in a automobile on a ferry from Cherbourg and informed Border Drive officers he was 13, however no age evaluation was carried out.
His fingerprints have been taken just a few weeks later and revealed he had hyperlinks with Norway and Italy.
The fingerprints have been despatched to each nations however with no request for any additional data. If this had been finished it could have revealed his true age.
On January 29, 2020, his foster carer reported {that a} dentist stated Abdulrahimzai was older than he had indicated and whereas it was felt an age evaluation was wanted, it was not finished as a result of the authorities felt a psychological well being evaluation was wanted first.
The age evaluation had nonetheless not been finished by the point Mr Roberts was killed.
From December 21, 2020, and all through 2021, there have been quite a lot of incidents and issues raised round Abdulrahimzai carrying knives, together with allegedly chasing one other pupil at his faculty with a knife, which he denied.
In Might 2021 he harm one other scholar in school, inflicting damage, and in July of that 12 months, he tried to headbutt his foster carer, who managed to maneuver out of the best way.
In September, when he had been positioned some place else, he was accused of assaulting one other little one.
A police cordon exterior the Subway sandwich store on Previous Christchurch Street in Bournemouth
The police cordoned off Horseshoe Frequent in Bournemouth following the deadly stabbing in March 2022
In January 2022 the authorities held a gathering confirming an age evaluation could be carried out as a result of Abdulrahimzai had been ‘bringing females again to his placement’ and was refusing to attend faculty or interact in training.
On the night of March 10, about 30 hours earlier than Mr Roberts was stabbed, police obtained a name a few youth carrying a machete-style knife in public.
The coroner’s report states that when police attended his tackle to talk to Abdulrahimzai the gates have been locked and so they might see a member of employees asleep at his desk however couldn’t acquire entry and no additional motion could be taken.
Abdulrahimzai’s fingerprints weren’t shared with Interpol till after Mr Robert’s demise, which revealed in September 2022 that he had been convicted of a double murder in Serbia.
Mrs Griffin stated there was a system of checks in place when Abdulrahimzai entered the nation to examine id and undertake an age evaluation so it was not a systemic failure.
She stated: ‘While it must be accepted there have been missed alternatives to undertake some checks, for instance PNC checks and checks with Norway and Italy when Border Drive despatched up to date fingerprints to them, it can’t be stated that had these checks been finished, the course of occasions that led to Tommy’s demise would have been any totally different.
‘It’s too speculative and distant to state that there was a causal hyperlink between these missed alternatives and Tommy’s demise.’
Mr Wallace added: ‘Tommy’s demise has torn our household aside.
‘There have been so many warning indicators that Abdulrahimzai shouldn’t be right here but the Residence Workplace did nothing about it.
‘He was kicked out of Norway and Italy however not right here and for that motive I maintain the Residence Workplace accountable for Tommy’s demise.
‘If somebody had finished their job he would nonetheless be alive.
‘It was so apparent that the man was simply ready to kill somebody and it simply occurred sadly to be Tommy.
‘He ought to have been locked up earlier than he killed Tommy. I am so indignant about it.
‘It isn’t simply the Residence Workplace however immigration officers and social employees. Everybody who was concerned in him (Abdulrahimzai) being right here is responsible as a result of none of them did their jobs. He was flagged up each week and each month.
‘He was carrying a knife and threatening folks with a knife and no one did something.
‘He spun some story about coming from a war-torn nation. That was all b******s’.
‘We’ll by no means have the ability to carry Tommy again however they nonetheless let in hundreds of individuals with out correct checks and it will hold taking place.’
BCP Council stated that when immigration providers deemed Abdulrahimzai as below 18 years outdated, it fulfilled its responsibility of duty by taking him into care as an unaccompanied little one asylum seeker.
BCP Council chief Millie Earl stated: ‘On this case, Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai claimed he was a toddler upon arrival.
‘Immigration providers perform an preliminary age enquiry at level of entry and as soon as a person claims they’re, or is recognized as, below 18 they have to be handled as a toddler.
‘To comply with authorities steering and to fulfil BCP Council’s responsibility of duty, Abdulrahimzai was taken into care as an unaccompanied little one asylum seeker in December 2019.
‘Everybody dwelling in our group ought to really feel protected and we are going to do all we will to make sure that tragedies reminiscent of this don’t occur once more within the BCP space, or nationally.
‘Because of this we’re working with the related Authorities departments and companies to establish the place enhancements could be made all through the nationwide technique of assessing and putting asylum seekers.’
A spokesperson for Dorset Police stated the drive totally co-operated with the inquest course of and carried out an inside investigation after stories Abdulrahimzai was seen with a knife two days earlier than Mr Roberts’ demise.
They stated: ‘We co-operated totally with the inquest course of and carried out an inside investigation by the Drive’s Skilled Requirements Division right into a report that was made on Thursday 10 March 2022 with data {that a} member of the general public had seen a teen in possession of a knife.
‘The younger individual was recognized to be Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai and officers made enquiries at his tackle to attempt to find him in the course of the early hours of Friday 11 March 2022, however they weren’t in a position to make contact with him.
‘The investigation discovered that there was no proof that Dorset Law enforcement officials have been conscious of any direct intention or risk made by Lawangeen Abdulrahimzai to hurt anybody and the extent of danger he posed was not identified.
‘There was no misconduct recognized for any officers or employees.
‘We stay dedicated to studying from tragic incidents reminiscent of this and recognized alternatives for bettering our response in incidents reminiscent of this.
‘Youth violence and knife crime is a precedence for Dorset Police and in depth work is ongoing to scale back the presence of harmful weapons on our streets.’
A Residence Workplace spokesperson stated: ‘Our deepest sympathies stay with the family members of Thomas Roberts.
‘We’ll take into account the findings of the Coroner’s report, however it could not be applicable to remark additional within the interim.’
