Outrage in Sweden after court refuses to deport convicted rapist

A Swedish appeals court’s decision not to deport a convicted rapist because his attack on a 16-year-old girl was not deemed “exceptionally serious” has sparked outrage, fueling a backlash against Sweden’s justice system.

The Northern Norrland Court of Appeal confirmed to Fox News Digital that the accused, Eritrean national and illegal immigrant Yezied Mohamed, was sentenced to three years in prison for raping a 16-year-old girl from the northern town of Skellefteå on September 1, 2024. The court recognized that although the crime was serious, it did not meet the threshold for deportation due to its nature and of its short duration.

The move drew swift condemnation from Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, who issued a video promising stricter deportation laws. “No one should have to worry about meeting their attacker or rapist on the street,” Kristersson said. “Those who commit serious crimes in Sweden and are not Swedish citizens must leave the country.”

In a written response to Fox News Digital, Judge Lars Viktorsson said the court took into account both the nature and duration of the act, noting that there was no use of a weapon, there was no sexual intercourse, and “the duration of the incident was short.” “It is true that the duration of the rape was important in assessing the issue of deportation,” Viktorsson said, “However, the nature of the offense was at least as important.”

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Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson attends a news conference on Sweden’s NATO candidacy in Stockholm, Sweden, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023. Nearly two years after Sweden officially applied to join NATO, its membership now depends on convincing one country, Viktor Orbán’s Hungary, to officially ratify its candidacy for the military alliance. (Pontus Lundahl/TT news agency via AP, file)

Kristersson pledged to introduce “the toughest legislation in all the Nordic countries”, saying any crime carrying more than a fine could lead to deportation. “With these new, stricter rules, six times more people are expected to be deported. We are going further than any government has ever done before.”

Migration Minister Johan Forssell echoed the Prime Minister’s sentiment in a video he posted on X, calling the matter unacceptable. “The victim’s right to safety must always take precedence over the perpetrator’s right to stay in Sweden,” he said. “Next year I will introduce new legislation that will make Sweden the toughest Nordic country when it comes to crime-related evictions.”

“We also need to review international conventions that, until now, have made it more difficult to carry out necessary evictions… This is about justice and giving victims the dignity and closure they deserve,” he said.

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An exterior view of the district court in Stockholm, Sweden, October 15, 2024. Yezied Mohamed was not tried by this court but by the Northern Norrland Court of Appeal. (Jonathan Klein/AFP via Getty Images)

The district court initially acquitted him, acknowledging that a rape had occurred but finding insufficient evidence to establish that he was the perpetrator. After an appeal, the Court of Appeal overturned that decision, finding that Mohamed matched the description given by the victim and a witness, and that forensic evidence placed him near the scene.

The court sentenced him to three years in prison, the minimum for rape in Sweden, and ordered him to pay 240,000 Swedish crowns, or about $25,600, in damages. He ruled that although the offense was serious, it was not “of such an exceptionally serious nature” as to justify expulsion under refugee protection grounds. A judge dissented, saying he should be deported.

The decision received worldwide attention after social media posts claimed Mohamed avoided deportation because the rape “lasted less than ten minutes.” Although no specific time frame appears in the judgment, the court confirmed that duration was a factor in its assessment.

Swedish journalist Christian Peterson told Fox News Digital that the ruling’s wording – referring to the “character and duration” of the act – “became a flashpoint for public anger.”

“The judges themselves determined what aspects of the crime were relevant and whether they were serious enough to warrant deportation,” Peterson said. “That’s what makes this decision so controversial.”

Elon Musk shared a tweet that garnered nearly 10 million views criticizing the Swedish justice system’s leniency towards migrants. (Nathan Howard/Reuters)

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Peterson said the case highlights a broader problem: Sweden’s difficulty deporting migrants even after serious convictions.

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“In Sweden it is very difficult to deport migrants, even those convicted of serious crimes,” he said. “This case has become symbolic because people feel it shows how the system protects offenders more than victims.”

He pointed to similar cases, including the 2016 murder of Elin Krantz, a young woman killed by an Ethiopian man with a residence permit, and recent reports of rapes in nursing homes involving foreign-born workers.

A police car in Stockholm, Sweden on May 1, 2021. (Nils Petter Nilsson/Getty Images)

“It was only after the right-wing coalition came to power in 2022 that meaningful reforms began to take shape,” Peterson said. “Before this, the issue was considered too politically sensitive.”

Yet, he says, “Sweden has not joined the Danish-Italian initiative within the European Union to reform the European Convention on Human Rights, which critics say limits the possibility of deporting convicted offenders. Denmark, Italy and Austria have joined, but not Sweden.”

As public anger mounts, the Swedish government is under pressure to implement stricter policies.

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Judge Viktorsson told Fox News Digital that the court followed existing law and precedent, “but the power to change eviction standards rests with lawmakers.”