A judge has given a lighter sentence to an Afghan for raping an 18 year-old girl so he wouldn’t risk losing refugee residency status, the AD reports.

Zaman S, 38, was found guilty of raping the girl, who has learning difficulties, in the back of a shop where he worked. The girl came into the shop to buy a bag but was lured into the back where S accosted her.

The norm for the crime is 24 months but S was given 20 months because, the judge said, the suspect is from an unsafe country and wants to start a family with his wife who has also come to this country. A higher sentence would have ‘far-reaching legal consequences for his status in the Netherlands’, he said.

Other factors contributing to a lighter sentence where the fact that the rape took place over two years ago and the defendant had no criminal record, the paper writes.

Lawyer Richard Korver, who acted for the victim, said the status of a person who has committed such a serious crime should not be taken into consideration.

MPs have said they want more clarity on the guidelines in these cases.  ‘This can’t be what the law means and we will ask the justice minister for an explanation,’ the AD quotes CDA MP Madeleine van Toorenburg as saying.

The Volkskrant reported that in 2017 90 people with official refugee status had their permits withdrawn after being found guilty of a serious crime or forming a threat to public order.