Afeez Salau, a 31-year-old Nigerian man who entered the UK illegally on a small boat from Germany in 2018, has been jailed for five years for raping a woman at his Lewisham flat in February 2024. The woman had rejected his marriage proposal because she believed he only wanted to improve his immigration status. According to court testimony reported by the source, Salau ignored her repeated refusals and only stopped when she struck him in the chest.

Salau's 2.5-year effective sentence – and the lifelong consequences for his victim

As reported, Salau was sentenced to five years in prison at Southwark Crown Court on June 12, but he will only serve half that time in custody. the judge imposed a 10-year restraining order and placed Salau on the sex offenders register for life.. The victim, in her impact statement, described feeling "numb for weeks" and "disgusted in men all of the time," with an ongoing fear of HIV that proved negative. She is left with a "feeling of dread" that the source notes still haunts her.

Judge Martyn Levitt's assessment: A 'manipulative male' who knew what consent meant

Sentencing Salau,Judge Levitt said he concluded that Salau is "a somewhat manipulative male who does not listen to a woman when she says no." The judge noted that Salau was well aware of what consent is and "ignored her consistent requests." The woman's suspicion that the marriage was a ploy for residency was central to the case, with the judge calling her "a highly principled lady" who entered the relationship with caution.

Why there is 'no evidence' of Salau's nationality – and the deportation limbo

The source reports that the judge stated there is no evidence to prove Salau's nationality or reason for being in the UK and that he has not applied to the Home Office to remain. salau is described as "likely to be deported" after his sentence, but with no nationality documentation, the process may be delayed or complicated. This raises an open question: how do UK authorities verify identity and proceed with removal when an individual has no official records?

The broader pattern of marriage-for-visa cases among small-boat arrivals

The case fits a known vulnerability in the UK asylum system: asylum seekers or illegal entrants sometimes seek marriage to a British citizen as a path to residency. According to the report, Salau arrived on a small boat from Germany in 2018 and had not regularised his status. while not all such relationships are exploitative, this conviction underscores the risk of coercion. The victim's suspicion, validated by the jury's verdict, points to the need for increased scrutiny of immigration-linked marriage proposals.