Refugee finally cleared to travel to the US

A Sudanese refugee who was stopped from leaving for the US because he had a pending court case is finally able to leave.

The Daniel Haile Tesfamihret, 25, was cleared for travel after he was conditionally discharged for three years last month for seriously injuring another immigrant outside the Tigullio club in St Julians in June last year.

The young Sudanese was about to board the plane on March 25 when the immigration police noted on their paperwork that he stood charged with grievous bodily harm and that the case was still pending.

He was meant to benefit from a US resettlement programme, which was launched in 2007, but despite the rigorous security checks, which "includes name and biometric checks", the immigrant was still accepted to travel under the programme.

A spokesman for the US Embassy in Malta said that "all applicants for a US immigration benefit are subject to criminal and national security background checks... A refugee case cannot be approved until all background and security checks are complete".

However, when asked why this immigrant was accepted despite the pending court case, the Embassy said it did not discuss applications by individuals.

The resettlement programme is a collaborative partnership between the UN's refugee agency, the UNHCR, the International Organisation of Migration, the US Department of Homeland Security and a number of Maltese non-governmental organisations.

When he was arrested at the airport, the refugee told Police Inspector Martin Sammut he had the court's permission to leave but all the documents were on the plane with his wife and children.

They are now resettled in the US waiting for him.

Mr Tesfamihret was then charged with breaching bail conditions, which restrict him from leaving the island until his case was closed.

Inspector Sammut told the court the accused had first been arraigned in June last year after he seriously injured a man in St Julians. On April 7, just two weeks after his arraignment for breaching bail conditions, the pending court case was heard and Mr Tesfamihret admitted to the charges and was conditionally discharged for three years by Magistrate Antonio Mizzi.

He is now waiting to move to the US.