Man who has lived in the streets of northern Cyprus for over 16 years arrested for illegal residency, Lawyers to block his deportation

If you lived in Lefkosa, you should know Abubakar Uthman and familiar with his lifestyle. He has been on the street for years and neglected by the state, authorities, universities, student bodies and even his own country. He was arrested by Turkish Cypriot on Sunday and so much has happened since his arrest.

Abubakar Uthman, a 44-year-old Ghanaian national who has been living in north Cyprus for several years was arrested by Turkish Cypriot police on Saturday August 24 for living in the country for more than 16 years without a resident permit. What an irony!

He was taken to the Lefkosia district court on Sunday charged with illegal residency where he was ordered to be detained for 2 days for the purpose of investigation.

Police in a court statement said Abubakar Uthman, who was detected by the Crime Prevention team of the Lefkosia Police Department on Bedrettin Demirel Street in Lefkosa at around 6.30pm on Saturday August 24 was arrested with force after it was determined that he had resided in the TRNC without a residence permit for 5807 days since September 30, 2008.

Police said the suspect said in his statement that he did not work anywhere and that people he did not know gave him food and cardboard. 

He will be brought back to court again on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Lawyers who are members of the Bar Association has pledged to represent him in court. 

The Human Rights Committee of the Bar Association also stepped in to prevent his deportation.

According to information obtained by the Cyprus Post, despite the procedure of generally deporting people who do not have a residence permit in the country, the Human Rights Committee of the Bar Association stepped in to prevent Uthman's deportation.

***How did the police just woke up and decided to arrest a man who has been on the street for years? Has he been invisible to the overzealous police officer who arrested him? He should be a citizen already!