Mr FS

In August 2005, Mr FS, a national of Zimbabwe, arrived at Heathrow Airport using a false passport. He attended the Home Office to claim asylum in the UK three days later. He was not able to produce a valid passport at his asylum interview.

He was arrested and admitted to travelling to the UK on a false passport but said that he left Zimbabwe because his life was in danger.

Mr FS was charged with failure to produce a satisfactory immigration document contrary to section 2(1) of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc) Act 2004.

On legal advice, he pleaded guilty at Croydon Magistrate’ Court in August 2005 and received a sentence of six months’ imprisonment.

Mr FS was granted asylum in the UK in July 2008. He was subsequently granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK by the Home Office in 2010.

The CCRC received an application for review of the conviction in July 2016.

Following review, the CCRC concluded that Mr FS had a statutory defence to the charge on which he was convicted, namely a “reasonable excuse”.

Mr FS’ account that he did not have his own passport on his journey because of a well-founded fear of persecution had, since his trial, been accepted as credible by a Tribunal.

The legal advice provided to Mr FS deprived him of a defence which, on the evidence available, would probably have succeeded.

Consequently, there was a real possibility the Crown Court would agree to vacate Mr FS’ guilty plea and then order a stay of proceedings or, if Mr FS was re-prosecuted, that he would be acquitted.

The CCRC referred the conviction in March 2018.

The Crown Court quashed the conviction in July 2018.