A transgender woman who obtained asylum in the United Kingdom after claiming she faced persecution because of her sexuality has been arrested over allegations that she assisted other asylum seekers in fabricating similar claims to secure permission to remain in the country.
According to the Daily Mail, 42-year-old Sajjad Miah established Apanjon, an organisation based in east London that says it supports LGBT people from Bangladesh. She was arrested on suspicion of fraud and immigration offences after Home Office officials raided her residence and confiscated phones, jewellery and thousands of pounds in cash.
The UK Home Office alleges that Apanjon charged men up to £4,500 to assemble evidence packages for claims that they were gay and would face persecution if sent back to their countries of origin. The alleged packages contained letters of support, photographs and other documents intended to back up their claims.
Miah, who received asylum in 2013, has denied the allegations, maintaining that Apanjon assists people who genuinely risk persecution because of their sexual orientation.
UK INVESTIGATES MORE THAN 100 ASYLUM APPLICATIONS
According to the report, the Home Office is examining more than 100 current and previous asylum applications that may be connected to Apanjon. Immigration Enforcement officials arrested Miah during an early-morning operation at her London residence. Another individual believed to have links to the organisation was also arrested on suspicion of fraud and immigration offences, while a third person was detained on suspicion of being in the UK unlawfully.
Authorities also searched the business centre in Whitechapel that served as Apanjon's headquarters.
Speaking to the Daily Mail after being released on bail, Miah said: "They arrested me at my house in the morning and took me to the police station for questioning."
She explained that she established Apanjon after being granted asylum because she wanted to assist others experiencing circumstances similar to those she had faced.
Miah said the organisation assesses applicants before providing letters of support, claiming that it monitors individuals for six months to evaluate whether their accounts are credible. She denied supplying forged documents or accepting money to manufacture evidence, insisting that Apanjon genuinely supports LGBT Bangladeshis facing persecution.
She also accused authorities of unfairly singling out the organisation and casting doubt on its credibility despite its work helping people seeking protection.
Addressing the cash and valuables seized during the raid, she said: "The money was for my rent, and the jewellery belonged to my sister."
HOW THE ALLEGED ASYLUM FRAUD OPERATED
People may apply for asylum on the grounds of sexual orientation if they face persecution because they are gay, bisexual or otherwise belong to the LGBT community. Applicants from countries where same-sex relationships are criminalised or provoke serious social hostility may argue that returning home would expose them to danger.
The Home Office alleges that some men associated with Apanjon claimed to be gay only after their initial asylum applications, including applications based on political grounds, had been rejected.
According to the allegations, the organisation supplied letters and photographs to support these subsequent claims. One case mentioned in the report involved an applicant who reportedly disclosed his sexual orientation nine years after submitting his original asylum application.
The Daily Mail also reported that immigration judges had previously raised doubts about the credibility of evidence connected to Apanjon. In one instance, a judge reportedly concluded that photographs submitted by an applicant who claimed to have attended the organisation's events had been staged.
It is not yet clear whether the photographs displayed on Apanjon's website are among the images alleged to have been fabricated. The allegations against Miah have not been proven in court.
WHAT IS APANJON AND WHAT SERVICES DOES IT PROVIDE?
Apanjon presents itself as an organisation advocating equality and justice for LGBT people in Bangladesh. Its stated work includes organising monthly gatherings, cultural and social activities, supporting people who are coming out as gay, and providing access to legal advice.
According to its website, the organisation works alongside solicitors and barristers to offer members legal guidance and current information. It says these services are designed to assist LGBT people experiencing persecution, hate crimes, physical or verbal abuse, and discrimination.
Apanjon operated from a business centre in Whitechapel, a neighbourhood in east London with a substantial Bangladeshi community.
ASYLUM APPLICATIONS BASED ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION
The Daily Mail reported that 2,133 asylum seekers who cited their sexual orientation as the basis for their claims were permitted to remain in Britain in 2023, the most recent year for which relevant figures were available. This represented a significant increase from 762 cases in 2022 and 677 in 2021.
Pakistan recorded the highest number of such cases, with 578 in 2023. Bangladesh followed with 175, Nigeria with 103 and India with 39. These numbers concern asylum applications involving sexual orientation and do not establish how many, if any, involved fraudulent claims.
British law recognises that LGBT people can qualify for asylum when they face persecution in their countries of origin. In 2010, the UK Supreme Court ruled that gay asylum seekers could not be denied protection merely on the grounds that they might avoid persecution by concealing their sexuality.
The case has brought renewed attention to the difference between legitimate persecution claims and allegations of abuse of the asylum process. UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said people who falsely claim to have faced persecution undermine the asylum system and harm those who genuinely require protection.
"Asylum applicants faking persecution are beneath contempt and mock real victims who need protection. To the gangs profiting from this disgraceful fraud: you will be prosecuted, stripped of your dirty money and shut down," she said.
"And to those cheating the system, your claim will be thrown out, and you will be removed from this country," she added.
The investigation is continuing, and the allegations against Miah and Apanjon have not yet been established in court.
