Failed refugee claimant, MS-13 gang informant, identity thief and forger can stay in Canada

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FGH’s sister submitted evidence describing “the killing of her former husband by gang members more than five years after he was first threatened, suggesting that the passage of time and efforts to avoid detection may not attenuate the risk,” said the decision

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FGH requested a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) — his last-ditch bid to stay in Canada — last December. This past February, a senior immigration officer turned him down, finding “there was no evidence that MS-13 had attempted to locate or harm him since 2017.”

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The same immigration officer “also found there was no objective evidence that MS-13 was aware that he had acted as an informant or had any ongoing interest in him. The officer noted that the applicant had lived in Honduras after his removal from the United States, and there was no evidence that he had experienced any harm or threats. The officer observed that the applicant’s evidence addressed generalized rather than personalized risks, and he had failed to rebut the presumption of adequate state protection in Honduras.”

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FGH requested a deferral of his removal on April 7, but that was refused a week later by an inland enforcement officer with the Canada Border Services Agency, said the decision.

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FGH took his case to a Federal Court judge, looking for an order staying his removal to Honduras pending determination of his application for a judicial review of his adverse PRRA.

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“I am satisfied that the applicant has demonstrated, with clear and convincing non-speculative evidence, that he will suffer irreparable harm if he returns to Honduras,” wrote Justice Simon Fothergill.

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FGH “notes that his criminal convictions were for non-violent offences committed more than ten years ago as part of his efforts to avoid detection in the United States,” said the judge.

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“He has abided by Canadian law since his arrival in this country, and he has recently applied for criminal rehabilitation. He has married a Canadian citizen, and he hopes to eventually be sponsored for permanent residence.”

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FGH’s lawyer “requested that his client’s name be anonymized, given the basis of his claim for protection in Canada,” Fothergill said, noting Immigration Minister Lena Diab did not oppose the request.

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“I am satisfied that an anonymity order is necessary and proportionate to prevent ‘a risk of harm that rises above mere inconvenience or embarrassment,’” Fothergill said.

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According to Public Safety Canada, MS-13, AKA La Mara Salvatrucha, “is a transnational criminal organization primarily operating out of El Salvador, with a significant presence in Honduras, Guatemala, and the United States. In El Salvador, MS-13 has evolved from its origins as a street gang into a criminal-economic-military-political power. MS-13 has engaged in widespread, targeted killings of law enforcement and other state officials; the indiscriminate killings of civilians; have used violence to shut down or seize control of vital public services; have established military-style training camps for its members; and have obtained military weapons in order to instill terror and enforce their will on the state and populace.”

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