Akeel Hassan Abbas Al Baiiaty hoped to return to Iraq, where he would marry his fiancee. Photo / Getty Images
Akeel Hassan Abbas Al Baiiaty hoped to return to Iraq, where he would marry his fiancee. Photo / Getty Images
A serial rapist's hopes to return to Iraq, where he would marry his fiancee, have been dashed by the Parole Board, which said it is not satisfied women there would be safe from him.
Akeel Hassan Abbas Al Baiiaty was sentenced to preventive detention for raping a 20-year-old student ina hostel during February 2004.
It came just weeks after he was released from prison.
He had earlier been sentenced to nine years' imprisonment after he raped two Auckland prostitutes in 1997.
In late April, the Iraqi refugee made an "impassioned declaration that he has changed" to the Parole Board but his release was declined over concerns about his reintegration into society.
In a decision released to the Herald today, Parole Board panel convenor Neville Trendle said Al Baiiaty is still considered a high-risk of re-offending.
The board heard that Al Baiiaty, who is subject to a deportation order, planned to live with his sister when he returned to his homeland.
There the 49-year-old wanted to marry his fiancee "as soon as practicable".
Akeel Hassan Abbas Al Baiiaty is staying behind bars but he will reapply for parole in five months. Photo / 123RF
Al Baiiaty would work in his family's clothing business and hoped to move into his own home.
"His family has arranged for further counselling with a psychologist in Iraq and he also has support through the mosque," Trendle said in the decision.
The board accepted Al Baiiaty had completed the rehabilitation phase of his sentence, but noted that the reintegration activity available to him is limited given his status as a deportee.
"He has completed a safety plan and his release proposal appears sound," Trendle said in the decision.
"What is missing from his release plan is a reintegration meeting with his support network in Iraq where he will present his safety plan, outline his risks and the plans that he has to keep himself and the community, particularly women, safe."
That reintegration meeting was crucial, the Parole Board ruled.
"This is a vital step in Mr Al Baiiaty's case as it will be only his family who can provide him with support and supervision," Trendle said.
"He will not be subject to the board's release conditions, nor will he have the support and supervision of a probation officer who is fully aware of his offending.
"Put shortly, we are not satisfied as to the safety of the community in Iraq, or women Mr Al Baiiaty may have come into contact there, in the absence of a fully formed support network who will be familiar with his activities when he returns to the community.
"It is essential that they are fully informed and able to manage his risk in a different environment, albeit that risk is presently assessed as a high risk of sexually re-offending."
The 49-year-old's request for parole was declined and he will make another bid again in five months.
After the court case the student's battle for ACC compensation due to the anxiety and post-traumatic stress she suffered became a politically contentious point.
In her later adult life, she struggled to conceive a child naturally with her partner and choose IVF treatment.
It has previously been reported that she regrets that she did not get the help she needed sooner because she was in disbelief at what had occurred.
