A Jamaican man convicted of murder has successfully appealed against deportation, arguing he faces death threats from the notorious One Order gang if forced to return to his homeland.
The unnamed migrant, who has lived in Britain since 1996, won his human rights case at the Upper Tribunal in Cardiff after claiming the criminal syndicate had murdered his brothers and attacked his family home.
His initial asylum application was rejected by the Home Office, with the First-tier Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber upholding that decision.
However, the Upper Tribunal found significant flaws in the original ruling, determining that key safety concerns had been "overlooked" and ordering a fresh hearing.
The tribunal was upheld
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The Upper Tribunal ruled that the First-tier Tribunal had failed to properly assess the migrant's credibility and the genuine risks he might face in Jamaica.
Judge Sean O'Brien found that the original tribunal had "misunderstood" evidence about which family members had been murdered and when these killings occurred.
The judge noted: "The [First-tier Tribunal] judge had overlooked the fact that the core elements of the [Jamaican's] account were not challenged by [the Home Office], had misunderstood [his] evidence about [his] family he claimed had been murdered because of gang retribution and when, and had given no apparent consideration to the attempts made to verify that [his] sister remained in Witness Protection."
One Order, established more than two decades ago, is allegedly affiliated with the Jamaica Labour Party and has been accused of killings, extortion and drug dealing.
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Spanish Town in Jamaica
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The gang operates from Spanish Town, a known criminal hotspot in Jamaica.
The migrant claimed that One Order members shot his brothers and attacked their family home, forcing his sister into the Witness Protection Programme as a safety measure.
Earlier this year, the gang's leader Othneil 'Thickman' Lobban was killed by police in a shootout, triggering violent reprisals that forced schools and businesses to close.
Court documents revealed the migrant committed murder but provided no specific details, noting only that he had undergone "offender management" rehabilitation and now demonstrates an "admirable work ethic".
Judge O'Brien acknowledged doubts about certain aspects of the migrant's claims and suggested his lengthy absence from Jamaica might reduce the risk of being targeted.
Nevertheless, he concluded that the First-tier Tribunal's approach to assessing credibility was "erroneous" and "unsustainable", necessitating a new hearing.
"All in all, I cannot be satisfied that the judge would necessarily have found that the [Jamaican] would not be at risk from the One Order Gang had she taken a permissible approach to credibility," Judge O'Brien stated.
The case will now return for a fresh hearing where all evidence regarding the potential danger from One Order will be reconsidered.
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