Published 6 April 2023 at 09.19
Domestic. An Eritrean in Haparanda was beaten by a gang after trying to rape a woman. A locally known 77-year-old asylum activist then tried to get the African freed by explaining that the African had been drunk and that the woman's story could be questioned. Now it is clear that the Eritrean will not be deported.
Share the article
TwittraShare
© The police
The defendant's shirt.
© The police
The defendant's shirt.
© The police
The defendant's jeans.
© Police
Woman's scarf.
April 19 In 2020 in Haparanda, a 20-year-old woman with an African immigrant background was subjected to attempted rape by Kiflay, born in 1993, from Eritrea. The woman became suicidal after the incident and was urged by people with foreign debt to withdraw the report.
Was the woman deceived
The woman has told during questioning that she and Kiflay are superficially familiar with each other and have mutual friends. Late Sunday night, Kiflay called the woman several times and asked her to come to his apartment to talk about a conflict that had arisen between him and her mother and other people.
At about 7:30 p.m., she stepped into his residence and quickly felt sick to her stomach because no one else, except Kiflay, was there. He claimed that her mother was at the neighbor's and indicated that he wanted to talk undisturbed. Out of politeness, she chose to take off her shoes and sat on the edge of the sofa, with her outer clothes on. Kiflay was drunk after he had been celebrating an Eritrean holiday with a lot of alcohol.
Attacked
In the middle of their conversation, Kiflay started talking about having feelings for her and wanting her. Kiflay got angry after she replied that she had no feelings for him. She said she didn't want to be alone with a man and went to the front door. As she bent down to put on her shoes, Kiflay came from behind and grabbed her by the waist and began to pull her backwards.
Kiflay pinned her against the refrigerator so she then ended up on the floor, with her back against the refrigerator, and tried to away his hands. He tried to kiss her forcibly, but she managed to break free and ran away.
He followed and tried to pull her towards the bedroom while she held onto the stove. When she fell, the stove was dragged on the floor so that broken glass appeared and she ended up on her back. Kiflay lay on top of her and grabbed her under her shirt and began to tear at her pants so that they ended up 10 centimeters down.
Resisted
As In defense, she took a five-centimeter piece of glass and hit him in the face with it. Kiflay screamed, enraged, and put his hand to her mouth and throat, making her unable to breathe. In a panic, she kicked him in the stomach. Kiflay stood up and she yelled “sorry, sorry, sorry” at him.
She ran out of the apartment without shoes, with Kiflay behind her. She fell, but quickly got up, left the area and called a male friend who later met her outside Amanda's pizzeria. She, her boyfriend and two other guys went in a car to Kiflay to get her shoes. Kiflay opened the door and threw the shoes at her after they knocked.
Kiflay was beaten
A woman, who lives nearby, has testified that she heard a pane of glass break and went out on the balcony to check. In the courtyard, she saw three boys and a girl, as well as Kiflay lying on the ground. One of the guys assaulted Kiflay by delivering several brutal kicks and punches to his face and dragged him to the ground.
During the assault, Kiflay shouted several times in Swedish “sorry, sorry”. The other two guys watched with their hands in their pockets. The woman shouted at dari, to the guy who carried out the assault, to stop. He replied back in the same language “enter with you”.
Due to a lack of evidence, no one was charged for the assault on Kiflay or liable for damages for destroying his apartment window.
The police overview photo shows a pool of blood approximately 244 centimeters from Kiflay's stairs.
Quickly released
On April 20, 2020 at 00:20, Kiflay was arrested in his absence. The same day at 10:30 a.m. he was arrested on suspicion of attempted rape and taken for questioning. The very next day at 14:52 he was released.
Fria Tider has taken note of the Swedish Migration Agency's opinion regarding Kiflay. He is a citizen of Eritrea and applied for asylum in Sweden in May 2015. He initially lived at the Cape East asylum hotel in Haparanda. He was granted a permanent residence permit in July 2016. According to the Swedish Migration Agency, Kiflay risks torture or other “degrading treatment” in his home country.
In the summer of 2022, Kiflay traveled to Sudan's capital Khartoum to marry his Eritrean girlfriend.
p>Did not apply for deportation
On April 1, 2021, the lawsuit was filed at Haparanda district court. During the negotiations, Kiflay needed an interpreter in Tigrinja.
Fria Tider has called Chamber Prosecutor Erika Westerstrand to ask why she did not demand deportation.
– I don't remember how it was, but Eritrea is a country to which there is an impediment to deportation, she replies.
On December 14, 2021, the district court verdict was announced. Kiflay was convicted of attempted sexual assault. The penalty was a suspended sentence, with 120 hours of community service, and SEK 25,410 in damages to the woman.
“If prison had been chosen as a penalty instead, 4 months in prison would have been sentenced. The plaintiff has been on sick leave for periods and during spent three days in a psychiatric ward. For four months, she has not been able to go to school and graduate with full marks,” wrote the district court.
“She didn't get help after the incident and tried to kill herself. It has come home several times and tried to get her to drop the report. 2 men came and said they are a different culture. When it happens in the home country they usually get married and live happily,” it says in the police's preliminary investigation report.
The Court of Appeal verdict
On September 14, 2022, the Court of Appeal for Upper Norrland announced the verdict. The court changed the classification, from attempted sexual assault to attempted rape. The penalty was changed to one year and three months in prison. Kiflay's compensation to the woman was also increased to SEK 47,800.
On September 15, 2022, Norrbottens-Kuriren and Norrländska Socialdemokraten published the same article about the Court of Appeal verdict, written by journalist Alice Sangwill.
Fria Tider has called Alice Sangwill to ask why her article lacks information about the defendant's ethnic background and that the prosecutor did not demand deportation.
– How good that you pay attention. I will think about that in the future, she replies.
On October 13, 2022, an appeal was received from Kiflay to the Supreme Court. He demanded that the court grant leave to appeal and change the classification to sexual assault, instead of attempted rape, and that the prison sentence and damages be reduced.
The Court of Appeal verdict
< p>A few days later, on October 20, 2022, a submission was submitted to HD from a 76-year-old asylum activist and his wife. The man is locally known for having helped asylum seekers in connection with the asylum chaos in 2015.
The submission states the following:
“The judgment was put out of action because he was heavily intoxicated”, writes the duo about Kiflay and continues:
“There is, we believe, reason to question the victim's account of what happened and to question her motives.”
Furthermore, the asylum activist and his wife referred to that Kiflay was disadvantaged by his “language handicap” when he tried to “express himself in such an emotional and shameful situation” as the one he found himself in after being accused of rape.
On February 13, 2023, HD understood however, decision to refuse review.