A failed asylum seeker who raped a schoolgirl has claimed he cannot be deported back to Egypt because he is bisexual.
Karam Majdi was jailed for seven years in May 2018 after being convicted of raping the 14-year-old following a six-day trial at Brighton Crown Court.
Majdi, a student who was living at an address in Seafield Road, Hove, at the time of his arrest in 2017, met the schoolgirl at East Croydon station before travelling to a nearby hostel, where he raped her.
Now, the 27-year-old has told a tribunal he cannot be deported after claiming his sexuality would lead to him being persecuted in Egypt.
At a deportation tribunal on Thursday, it was heard he was deemed “high risk to children” during his imprisonment, reports MailOnline.
Representing the Home Office, George Mavrantonis, said: “Since 2021 he claimed to be bisexual. It is an embellishment, a fabrication for the asylum claim.
“In a report from 2019, the appellant reported to not currently be in a relationship, having dated girls that he has met on social media.
“There is only evidence towards his attraction to girls and none towards men. The sexuality claim must feign under the circumstances.”
Majdi allegedly lied to officials, claiming he was an unaccompanied child from Syria who had been fighting in Aleppo when he arrived in the UK by small boat in 2016.
He claimed his family had paid for his passage to Britain and paid for his solicitor during his asylum claim.
However, the Home Office rejected his application for asylum after disputing his claims to be from Syria.
Majdi had lied about being from Syria when he arrived in the UK, according to immigration authorities.
At this week’s tribunal hearing at Field House in central London, Majdi opted to defend himself under cross-examination and refused an interpreter.
Majdi “refused to be open” about his alleged sexuality and told the court he previously had relationships with two men.
However, he could not provide any evidence for these relationships, claiming any photos or texts were lost after he misplaced his iPhone SIM card.
He told the court: “Since we broke up, we do not speak. I’ve nothing else to say because we have no contact.”
The court also heard he had been convicted of further offences since his release from prison, including cocaine possession and driving without a licence and insurance.
Majdi, who continued to insist he was Syrian throughout the hearing, told the tribunal his identity document from Aleppo was obtained from a man he met at a mosque in Northampton.
However, Mr Mavrantonis questioned the authenticity of the document.
He added that even if it were genuine and Majdi was born in Syria, the country is no longer under the control of Islamic State or former President Bashar al-Assad, meaning it is no longer a threat to returning citizens.
Majdi’s claims of his sexuality and nationality will be ruled on in a judgement by next month.
In a statement after his trial in 2018, the victim’s mother added: “This incident has put an almighty strain on the family and has impacted on us all.
“What happened to our daughter was awful and sickening and something no child should go through, or parent have to deal with.
“I want to thank Detective Constable Stewart Cameron and PC Mark Green for all the hard work they did to help get the justice in this case and we hope that the sentence reflects the pain and trauma she has been put through.”