The late Queen's former Chaplain has called on the Home Office to be "more critical" of asylum applications into the UK, as alleged Clapham attacker Abdul Ezedi remains on the run.
Ezedi, who was granted asylum in the UK on his third attempt, is suspected of attacking a 31-year-old mother and her two children with a "corrosive alkaline substance" last Wednesday evening.
Following an appeal by the Metropolitan Police and a £20,000 reward for information, Ezedi has not been seen since the evening of the attack.
His last confirmed sighting was at Tower Hill Underground Station at approximately 9:33pm.
Queen Elizabeth II's former Chaplain says Christianity conversion is being ‘used as loophole’ by refugees
GB News / Metropolitan Police
Ezedi previously was rejected twice by the Home Office for his asylum application. On his third attempt, he reportedly claimed that he had converted to Christianity.
A priest vouched for his newfound faith, claiming he was "wholly committed" and he was granted asylum in the UK.
The 35-year-old is thought to have arrived from Afghanistan on the back of a lorry in 2016. He was then convicted of sexual assault and indecent exposure at Newcastle Crown Court in 2018.
Reacting to the news of his reported conversion to Christianity, Dr Gavin Ashenden told GB News that the "main failure" of churches in Britain is a lack of "continued oversight" for those who convert to the religion.
Abdul Ezedi is the subject of a national manhunt by police after an attack in Clapham on Wednesday
Metropolitan Police
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Ashenden fumed: "What were they doing granting asylum to a man who been convicted twice of sexual offences?
"There's a whole industry of fake conversions. One of the failures in the churches at the moment, particularly in Anglicanism, is there's no continued oversight. At least as a Catholic you're required to go to mass every week, or else you've broken the whole contract."
Ashenden then recalled another example of Christianity conversion: "I was a BBC presenter once, about 20 years ago, and I remember arguing on the case of an Iraqi woman who had become a Christian.
"And it was precisely the language she used about her relationship with Jesus which had so liberated her and changed her overnight that I found so convincing. The question is, would she continue to live as a Christian?"
Dr Gavin Ashenden says the UK is 'surrounded by lawyers who make it their business to fabricate cases'
GB News
Hitting out at the asylum system in Britain and the ability for priests to vouch for converts in order to have applications accepted, Ashenden said it is a "mistake" to treat it as a "religious problem".
Ashenden continued: "We're surrounded by lawyers who make it their business to fabricate cases for people to stay. It doesn't matter whether the fabrication is economic, political, religious or sociological. The point is the cases are being fabricated.
"By asking this the Christian community to be a bit more careful about the way it treats people, which I agree should be done, is not going to do anything more than scratching of the surface. The fact is that the whole asylum system is an exercise in political deceit and it needs to be undone and and and rebuilt, if that were politically possible."
Metropolitan Police Commander Jon Savell made a direct appeal to Ezedi on Friday evening. He said: "Abdul, you clearly have got some very significant injuries.
"We’ve seen the images. You need some medical help, so do the right thing and hand yourself in."
Officers are urging the public not to approach Ezedi if they see him. Anyone with information about Ezedi has been asked to call 020 7175 2784 or for an immediate sighting dial 999.