Australia High Court immigration ruling: Released detainee charged with two counts of assault of woman

One of the men released from immigration detention after the High Court’s ruling has now been charged with the indecent assault of a woman.

A man who was released from immigration detention as a result of a recent High Court ruling has now been charged with two counts of indecent assault.

Aliyawar Yawari was one of 148 people released from detention as a result of a November ruling by Australia’s top court that indefinite immigration detention is unlawful.

On Monday, three weeks after his release, Mr Yawari appeared at Adelaide Magistrates Court charged with two counts of indecent assault, which relate to an incident that allegedly occurred on Saturday.

Aliyawar Yawari was charged with two counts of indecent assault three weeks after being released from immigration detention. Picture: ABC

The 65-year-old was arrested at a motel in the Adelaide suburb of Pooraka on Saturday night after a report a woman had been indecently assaulted by a guest.

It is understood that he has previously been accused of attacking three women and was convicted of assault in 2016, per the ABC.

Mr Yawari did not apply for bail and has been remanded in custody until next month.

He is one of two former detainees who has recently been charged with an offence, according to Australian Border Force.

Another former detainee who was charged in NSW has been released on bail.

“I understand that two detainees — one in NSW and another in SA — have recently been charged and one individual remains in police custody,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong confirmed.

The incidents have prompted Opposition leader Peter Dutton to call for Immigration Minister Andrew Giles and Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil to be stood down.

“The reason these criminals are in the community is because of the ministers’ incompetence,” Mr Dutton said.

“Their decisions have resulted in further Australians being (allegedly) harmed. It’s a disgrace. No further excuses.”

A recent High Court decision found a stateless man, known as NZYQ, had been unlawfully held in immigration detention by the government. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

The High Court case

The High Court last month overturned a decades-old precedent after it found a stateless asylum seeker and convicted child sex offender had been unlawfully held in immigration detention.

In its landmark ruling, High Court justices found the man, referred to as NZYQ, had been detained unlawfully after serving time in jail for child sex offences.

The ruling resulted in nearly 150 people in similar circumstances to those of NZYQ to be released from immigration detention.

Immigration law expert Sanmati Verma, acting legal director at the Human Rights Law Centre, told news.com.au the ruling ended a “warehouse-like arrangement” where the government would lock up “people they didn’t want to deal with”.

The High Court’s decision resulted in dozens of people in similar circumstances being released from immigration detention. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

The government has said it will pursue expansions to preventive detention measures in the hopes of re-detaining some of the people freed by the High Court decision.

The government wants to extend existing anti-terror laws, which were introduced by the former Coalition government, to apply to serious violent and sexual offenders if they pose a risk to the community.

Federal cabinet considered the government’s proposal on Monday.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil has said parliament will not break for Christmas until the preventive orders are in place.