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A man charged with murder in Brisbane was released from immigration detention in April after the Australian Appeals Tribunal (AAT) decided he was “now a low risk of reoffending”.
Emmanuel Saki, 29, faced Richlands Magistrates Court last week charged with the May 12 murder of 22-year-old Bosco Minyurano.
It is alleged Saki stabbed Minyurano, an acquaintance, at Acacia Ridge about 12.10am on Sunday.
9News can confirm Saki was released from immigration detention after AAT Deputy President Stephen Boyle overturned a 2019 decision to strip the Sudanese-born man of his humanitarian visa on character grounds.
He had been detained at Yongah Hill Detention Centre until his release in early April.
Born in Khartoum in December 1994, Saki was 11 when he was resettled in Australia along with his father and siblings from Egypt in October 2006 after being granted Global Special Humanitarian visas.
But Saki’s visa was cancelled in October 2019 due to his failing the character test.
According to the AAT, he was in breach of the character test, “by reason of having a ‘substantial criminal record’ because he had been sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 12 months or more”.
The AAT heard that Saki had a long history of offending dating back to 2011, in NSW, the ACT and Queensland.
He was first jailed in July 2017 on two counts of reckless threats to kill, sentenced by the ACT Magistrates Court to eight months jail for each count.
He was jailed again for another two months in September 2018 for assault.
And in December 2018 he was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment for choking a person unconscious, assault occasionally actual bodily harm and assault.
In deciding to overturn the decision to revoke Saki’s humanitarian visa, Deputy President Boyle said he assessed Saki’s risk of reoffending as low.
Boyle said he had weighed up Saki’s links to Australia with the likely consequence of his forced return to South Sudan.
“In particular I find that the considerations of the strength, nature and duration of the Applicant’s ties to Australia, the best interests of minor children, the legal consequences of the decision and the impediments to the Applicant establishing and maintaining basic living standards if he were to be returned to South Sudan, outweigh those considerations weighing against the revocation of the cancellation of the visa,” Boyle said.
“In making that comparison, I am influenced by my assessment that, while some of the Applicant’s offences have been serious, he is now a low risk of reoffending.
“Accordingly, I find that there is another reason why the original decision should be revoked and that the discretion to revoke the cancellation of the Applicant’s visa should be exercised.”
A spokesman for Immigration Minister Andrew Giles declined to comment.
“The matter is before the court. We cannot comment on individual cases,” the spokesman said.
Saki remains remanded in custody. His next appearance is in the Richlands Magistrates Court on August 19.
