‘Contradictory’ residency case details
WELLINGTON: Karel Sroubek’s lawyer says new ‘‘11thhour information’’ that came to the Immigration Minister’s attention yesterday afternoon is an unusual turn of events.
In the House yesterday afternoon, Immigration Minister Iain LeesGalloway said: ‘‘Information may exist that directly contradicts information that I relied upon in making the decision relating to Karel Sroubek.’’
Mr Sroubek is believed to have returned to the Czech Republic since arriving in New Zealand in 2003, which would challenge any notion that his life might be at risk if he were deported.
Simon Laurent, who acted as a lawyer for Mr Sroubek, said if it was proved that Mr Sroubek had returned to the Czech Republic that would be ‘‘quite problematic’’.
Mr Laurent represented Mr Sroubek in the application for the cancellation of his deportation.
He said it was unusual that the Minister had received some ‘‘11thhour information’’ as Mr Sroubek’s case had been before Immigration New Zealand for a number of years.
‘‘I would have thought that would have been the sort of thing Immigration NZ would have canvassed quite carefully,’’ he told Newstalk ZB.
In terms of Mr LeesGalloway reopening Mr Sroubek’s case, Mr Laurent said he would need to be able to show the information he received was incomplete.
‘‘If he had been back to the Czech Republic, and that could be established beyond a doubt , then it would undermine the case for the minister.’’ Mr LeesGalloway has not provided a reason for granting Mr Sroubek residency, but Judge Roy Wade, who discharged Mr Sroubek without conviction after he was found guilty of using a false passport in 2011, argued Mr Sroubek would be in danger from corrupt Czech authorities if he were deported.
The new information, which the minister learned about yesterday afternoon, has prompted National leader Simon Bridges to demand a resignation from a minister he said was ‘‘incompetent and naive’’.
‘‘This is flabbergasting. It shows an incompetent and naive decision by Iain LeesGalloway,’’ Mr Bridges said.
‘‘If he’s been wrong here, if ultimately this man is to be deported, [Mr LeesGalloway] hasn’t got the judgement and the skills required in terms of keeping New Zealanders safe with these decisions, and he should resign.’’
Mr LeesGalloway has been under pressure since it emerged he granted residency to Mr Sroubek, even though Mr Sroubek was found guilty of using a fake passport and is at present serving a prison term for smuggling the drug MDMA.
Mr LeesGalloway would not comment on whether the information was about Mr Sroubek travelling back to the Czech Republic.
‘‘Information may exist that directly contradicts information that I relied upon in making the decision relating to Karel Sroubek,’’ he said yesterday.
‘‘This is not additional information. This is contradictory information. This is a very serious matter. I have to check the veracity of this additional information.’’
If officials had not fully informed him, Mr LeesGalloway said he would look at options for further action.
But Mr Bridges said it was the minister’s job to ask questions.
‘‘A case is put forward, but it’s then for the minister to ask the hard questions. Even a simple Google search would have told LeesGalloway that the parole board didn’t believe this man, a court of appeal didn’t believe him.
‘‘He just clearly got the report, signed it, and didn’t ask those hard questions.
‘‘He somehow didn’t know that this man . . . had been back to the Czech Republic. He wasn’t unsafe in that country because he had been back himself.’’
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has backed Mr LeesGalloway, said the residency decision was based on information available at the time.
‘‘If there is information that contradicts that, I imagine the minister would want to seek further advice on that,’’ Ms Ardern said. — NZME