A migrant who raped a sleeping woman has won the right to stay in Britain on human rights grounds.
Hendrix Ekwen, 34, took almost a decade to accept responsibility over the "appalling" sex attack on a drunk woman in 2017.
The Italian national of Nigerian heritage arrived in Britain in 2009 to join his family members living in the country, before launching an application under the EU Settlement Scheme in 2020 to stay.
Just months later, he was convicted of rape at Newcastle Crown Court and was sentenced to eight years behind bars.
Prior to the rape, Ekwen had been involved in five domestic abuse incidents and was handed a conditional discharge for possession of cannabis.
The migrant had launched an appeal against his deportation from Britain at the First-tier Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber.
He claimed he had "misinterpreted signals from the victim" during the sex attack, insisting that the offence was "inadvertent".
The 34-year-old also insisted he had "learned his lesson" after his conviction.
After his bid was rejected at the first-tier hearing, Eskwen subsequently appealed at the Upper Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber.
Deputy Upper Tribunal Judge Rebecca Pickering said: "In 2017 [Ekwen] raped the victim.
"[Ekwen] and the victim did not know one another, but were out with mutual friends on the night in question. Drinking was involved.
"[Ekwen] and his friend at some point in the evening moved to the victim's home. The victim had consensual sexual intercourse with [Ekwen's] friend.
"The victim then fell asleep. The victim was awoken by someone having sexual intercourse with her whilst lying behind her.
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"She expected it to be [Ekwen's] friend when in fact it was [Ekwen]. As soon as she realised she demanded [Ekwen] and his friend to get out of her home and reported this to the police."
The judge said that following his conviction in 2020, the migrant had "tried to place responsibility of the rape with the victim", branding it "deeply troubling".
She noted that Ekwen had now accepted his role in the attack through "a slow and gradual process".
She accepted that he felt "genuine shame" over the offence after he said he did not wish to be known as "that kind of person".
In her ruling, Judge Pickering said: "[Ekwen's] conviction for rape is an exceptionally serious matter. I have no hesitation in describing the offending as appalling.
"The victim was vulnerable by reason of intoxication and because she was asleep…The impact upon the victim was profound."
But she ultimately ruled that the 34-year-old could remain in Britain because she did not believe he posed a great enough threat to the general public to justify being removed from the country.
His appeal was accepted on human rights grounds.
Reform UK's Home Affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf has vowed that Reform will "deport this savage rapist" if it wins power.
"We will leave the ECHR and all foreign treaties that allow activist lawyers and judges to keep monsters like Hendrix in Britain, endangering British women and girls," Mr Yusuf confirmed.
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