Queensland police apprehended 39-year-old Sudanese man William Yekrop on December 7 after discovering a decade-old warrant for his return to prison that had previously gone unnoticed. Yekrop had been allowed to walk free from immigration detention under the High Court’s decision, which led to heated debates in Parliament over the release of over 140 detainees, including “hardcore criminals” according to the Coalition.
Yekrop, a former child soldier in the Sudanese civil war, had a history of over 40 convictions for offenses such as assault, larceny, and drunk driving. His humanitarian visa was revoked in 2013, and he was placed in immigration detention in 2014, as he was recognized as stateless and couldn’t be deported. His arrest followed the apprehension of Abdelmoez Mohamed Elawad, Emran Dad, Aliyawar Yawari, and another former detainee who had been arrested for reoffending.
The release of former detainees has put pressure on the government, resulting in the implementation of Operation Aegis, a joint task force to enforce visa conditions on the released detainees. The government has also introduced a preventative detention regime based on the High Risk Terrorist Offenders regime to put detainees assessed to pose an unacceptable risk back behind bars for a maximum of three years.