Chikhmous, Hazifa

Hazifa Chikhmous, a Syrian national, arrived by air at Gatwick Airport in 2012 and claimed asylum. He did not have a passport when he arrived.

He was arrested and charged with failing to produce an immigration document contrary section 2(1) of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants) Act 2004.

His solicitors advised him that he had no defence to the charge despite being aware that he could not have obtained a Syrian passport and was at risk of persecution there because of close family connections with prominent opponents of the Syrian regime.

On the day after his arrival in the UK, Mr Chikhmous followed the legal advice he was offered and pleaded guilty at Crawley Magistrates Court. He was sentenced to 12 weeks imprisonment.

In December 2012, he was granted asylum with five years’ leave to remain by the Home Office while still serving his prison sentence.

Because he pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court, Mr Chikhmous was not entitled to appeal against his conviction. He approached the CCRC in June 2015.

Following review, the CCRC concluded that Mr Chikhmous had a statutory defence to the charge on which he was convicted available to him under section 2 of the 2004 Act, namely a “reasonable excuse” for failing to produce a valid immigration document.

On the evidence available, that defence would quite probably have succeeded but the legal advice provided to Mr Chikhmous deprived him of that available defence.

Consequently, there was a real possibility that the Crown Court would set aside Mr Chikhmous’ guilty plea and conclude that in all the circumstances it should not uphold the conviction.

The CCRC referred the conviction in April 2017.

The Crown Court quashed the conviction in November 2017.