Pakistan Rejects UK Deportation Request for Convicted Grooming Gang Leader Shabir Ahmed
The government of Pakistan has formally rejected British attempts to deport Shabir Ahmed, a Pakistani national convicted in a Huddersfield grooming gang case. Pakistani authorities stated they have 'no connection whatsoever' with Ahmed, who received a 15-year prison sentence in 2012 for child sex offences and conspiracy to rape.
Ahmed, now 58, has completed his sentence but remains in the UK due to the absence of valid travel documents. The UK Home Office has sought to obtain an emergency travel certificate from Pakistan to facilitate his removal. However, a senior Pakistani official confirmed that Islamabad's foreign office will not issue such documentation, effectively preventing his deportation. The official underscored that Pakistan would not accept deportees it does not recognise as its citizens.
The refusal highlights the persistent difficulties faced by British authorities in deporting foreign nationals deemed undesirable, particularly those from countries less amenable to Western diplomatic pressure. Ahmed was initially released from prison in November 2020 and subsequently held at an immigration removal centre. He was later granted bail by an immigration tribunal in May 2021, a decision criticised by then-Home Secretary Priti Patel, who sought to appeal the ruling. He is currently understood to be residing in the north of England.
The protracted case of Shabir Ahmed draws attention to the often-complex realities of international deportation processes, where sovereign nations can obstruct the removal of individuals even after they have served their sentences within the UK justice system.
