Rapist of 16-Year-Old Girl Allowed to Stay Despite Conviction
A Swedish appeals court has caused uproar by ruling that Yazied Mohamed, a 19-year-old Eritrean refugee convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl, will not be deported. The shocking reason? The assault was deemed “too brief” to qualify as an “exceptionally serious offense.”
Mohamed attacked Meya Åberg in September 2024 while she was walking home through a pedestrian tunnel in Skellefteå, after missing her bus following a shift at McDonald’s. He grabbed her phone, dragged her into the tunnel, and raped her—until she managed to break free.
Three-Year Jail Term Won’t Mean Goodbye for Rapist
The Court of Appeal for Upper Norrland sentenced Mohamed to three years behind bars and ordered him to pay 240,000 kronor (around £17,500) in damages to Meya. But prosecutors’ plea to deport the convicted rapist was flatly rejected.
“Given the nature and duration of the offense, while serious, it does not constitute an exceptionally serious offense warranting deportation,” the court declared.
The court’s jaw-dropping decision hinged entirely on the assault’s length, sparking fierce backlash in Sweden and abroad.
Victim’s Trauma Overlooked as Rapist Walks Free to Stay
Meya and her family reported the attack straight away. Yet Mohamed, then 18, was initially acquitted for “lack of evidence.” It took a prosecution appeal to finally convict him.
Disturbingly, Meya spotted Mohamed again on her first day back at school—suggesting he might even be a fellow pupil—deepening her trauma.
“I want to say that I hate him and that he has destroyed me,” Meya told local media.
Sweden’s Refugee Protections Let Violent Criminals Off the Hook
Swedish law only permits deportation if the crime is “exceptionally serious” and poses a public safety risk—a tough hurdle that often spares refugee-status criminals from removal.
- Lay judge Sammy Lie (Sweden Democrats) dissented, demanding deportation.
- The case fits a disturbing trend where violent migrant offenders evade deportation.
- Since 2000, nearly two-thirds of those convicted of rape in Sweden are first- or second-generation migrants.
Conservative commentator Ian Miles Cheong slammed the ruling: “Sweden’s lost the plot. Now it measures the suffering of a 16-year-old in minutes.”
Rising Political Backlash Over Migrant Criminal Protection
This is not an isolated case. In July 2025, an Eritrean man with 196 criminal charges, including assaults on police and inmates, was also spared deportation. And four Eritrean men who gang-raped a woman in 2022 avoided removal too.
Critics warn Sweden’s refugee protections are being exploited by violent offenders, trapping victims like Meya in fear while their attackers roam free.
Tech investor Shaun Maguire summed it up: “This is how a high trust society unravels.”
Calls Mount for Tougher Deportation Laws
Sweden now faces growing pressure to overhaul its refugee laws to allow deportation of violent criminals regardless of status. The current system prioritises migrant protections over victims’ rights, fueling outrage.
Meya’s assault may have been “short,” but its scars are lifelong. Courts ignoring this reality have sparked international fury and bolstered right-wing demands to end Sweden’s lax immigration policies.
