A migrant sex offender who was mistakenly released from prison in a major blunder was paid £500 to leave the UK, it has emerged.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood said she shared the public’s anger over Hadush Kebatu’s bungled release and had “pulled every lever” to remove him from British soil – but revelations about the cash payment are likely to spark further outrage.
Kebatu, who was forcibly sent back to Ethiopia on Tuesday night with a team of five escorts on the flight, was given a £500 payment after threatening to disrupt his deportation flight.
Downing Street said on Wednesday that the payment had been an “operational decision” and came after officials rejected an application from Kebatu for a scheme that has offered up to £1,500 in resettlement grants in the past.
The government said the alternative was a “slower and more expensive process”, which could have included further detention, a new flight potentially costing thousands of pounds and fighting subsequent legal claims, they said.
The Conservatives have labelled the decision an “absolute disgrace”.
The government had vowed to deport Kebatu after he was wrongly freed from HMP Chelmsford on Friday morning instead of being sent to an immigration detention centre. The error triggered a two-day manhunt, which ended when he was re-arrested in London on Sunday.
Kebatu, who crossed the Channel in a small boat to enter the UK on 29 June, had been living at The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, when he sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl and a woman, sparking a wave of protests outside the accommodation used to house asylum seekers.
The prime minister’s official spokesman said on Wednesday: “Kebatu was forcibly deported. A team of five escorts accompanied Kebatu on a flight.
“We turned down an application from him of a facilitated return scheme, which under successive governments has offered resettlement grants of up to £1,500.
“However, given Kebatu threatened to disrupt the flight, an operational decision was taken to facilitate his return.”
It comes afterThe Independent revealed in June that the UK has paid migrants £53m to leave the country over the past four years.
Under a voluntary return scheme run by the government, migrants can receive up to £3,000 as an incentive to return to their home country, as part of what are known as “assisted returns”. They also have their flights paid for as part of the deal.
According to government documents, the facilitated returns scheme was set up nearly 20 years ago “to make the early removal of foreign national offenders (FNOs) to their country of origin easier”.
Kemi Badenoch’s spokesperson said that the UK needs to “leave the ECHR and deport all foreign criminals as soon as possible”.
Asked about the payment, the spokesperson said: “It’s an absolute disgrace and it goes to the heart of how much this government is messing up our immigration system.”
On Wednesday morning, border security minister Alex Norris could not confirm whether Kebatu received a cash payment to return to Ethiopia.
“I can’t tell you on the cash piece. I know that early in the process, he had asked for that and was denied… we do it sometimes to make a removal easier because it saves the taxpayer money, but I can’t tell in this case”, he told Good Morning Britain.
Prisons have been told to start a series of enhanced checks before inmates are released following the release blunder, while an independent inquiry has been announced to establish what went wrong.
Ms Mahmood said: “Last week’s blunder should never have happened, and I share the public’s anger that it did. I would like to thank the police for rapidly bringing Mr Kebatu into custody and the public for their vigilance.
“I have pulled every lever to deport Mr Kebatu and remove him off British soil. I am pleased to confirm this vile child sex offender has been deported. Our streets are safer because of it.
“If you come to this country and commit crimes, we will remove you.”
Deputy prime minister David Lammy said the incident was “unacceptable” and appeared to have been a result of “human error”. He added: “We must get to the bottom of what happened.”
There is growing pressure on the government to get a grip on the number of people arriving in the UK via small boats amid growing public anger over the issue.
Public discontent with the government’s handling of the issue and the housing of asylum seekers in hotels led to a wave of protests over the summer, as well as criticism from Labour’s political opponents after the number of people crossing the Channel reached a record high this year.
