Deportation threat for rapper with history of violence
TALENTED ARTIST WHOSE FAMILY FLED TURMOIL CALLS FOR A SECOND CHANCE
WITH interest from record labels, and support slots for superstars, rapper Denzel Munzara could have the world at his feet.
However he receives just £39 a week to live off by the Government, having now spent close to a decade with the lingering threat of deportation hanging over his head.
The 27-year-old has lived on Teesside since his family fled political turmoil in Zimbabwe when he was just eight.
However, on his 18th birthday, the Government issued him with a deportation order after he was jailed for a violent and terrifying Stockton home invasion.
Yet he insists his past is just that, having turned a corner since his last court appearance in 2017. His main focus now is to spread positivity through his music.
Under the alias Yunghydro, Denzel’s music is streamed on Spotify and Youtube, while he proudly recalls appearances on the BBC.
However, with the deportation order still in place, he fears his future will remain in limbo.
“It has been mind-numbing,” admits Denzel, from Thornaby.
“I’ve never stopped making music as it is self-expression. But if my career took off, somewhere along the lines I feel I’d be penalised by the Home Office. And I don’t know what is in the future. It could be another 10 years like this, as I don’t have any answers.”
The Middlesbrough musician and producer has supported the likes of Tinie Tempah and Professor Green.
Involved with independent labels 1010 Recordings and MMP International, he even has a new track – All I Need – due out on tomorrow.
However, while he should have a promising future, his past is plagued by shocking acts of violence.
Besides that 2011 aggravated burglary, for which he was handed a four-year sentence, he was later locked up in Holme House after attacking a car with a golf club.
Other convictions include common assault and criminal damage, crimes which have left him at serious risk of joining over 9,000 criminals deported by the UK Government since the start of 2019.
However, while he accepts committing the crimes, he also feels that he’s done the time.
For almost five years now, he’s stayed out of trouble and he believes he is showing that there is a value in giving him a second chance and allowing him to remain in the UK.
“I do believe that I should be given an acknowledgement to stay here now,” he said.
“If I did do something, which I won’t, they (the Government) can turn around and say they were right.
“But I feel I’ve shown that I’ve changed, and that I can bring something positive, and I want to fight for my papers.”
The problem the Government
has had in deporting him is, effectively, they’ve had nowhere to deport him too.
Unlike other family members, he doesn’t possess a British passport. However Teesside Crown Court previously heard “that he cannot be deported because he doesn’t hold the passport to any other state”.
As such he’s been stuck living under the order. However, the strict terms means that he’s unable to work or go to college.
The little money he does receive is there for the basics.
That experience has been a “challenge” – but one he claims has made him a better person.
“This isn’t something someone asks for, but the way I look at it, it has been a challenge.
“It has taught me a lot more about myself, and it gave me a real insight into my life.
“I used to be very narrow minded, so in one sense I’m thankful.”
Yet the restrictions have kept him in a state of limbo, one from which he feels after a decade he should be able to escape from.
“There’s a person who I know I can be, but they won’t let me be (him),” he added
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The public rightly expects us to remove those who have no right to be in the UK, including dangerous foreign criminals, and we make no apology for removing these people to keep the public safe.
“The New Plan for Immigration will fix this broken immigration system and stop the abuse we are seeing by expediting the removal of those who have no right to be here.”
If I did do something, which I won’t, they (the Government) can turn around and say they were right. But I feel I’ve shown that I’ve changed, and that I can bring something positive, and I want to fight for my papers
DENZEL MUNZARA