Bogus websites, staged protests and pretend atheists: Inside the fake asylum industry

Bogus websites, staged protests and pretend atheists: Inside the fake asylum industry

The asylum process has become a target for various forms of deception, including fabricated websites, orchestrated demonstrations, and invented personal narratives. Our investigation uncovered how migrants and their advisors manipulate the system by crafting false evidence to support their claims. One such example involves convincing the Home Office that a person is intentionally posing as an atheist or a gay individual, with fees charged for these services.

During an undercover operation in early April, a reporter posed as a Bangladeshi university dropout considering asylum. At an office near Mile End Road in east London, he met with Zahid Hasan Akhand, who introduced himself as a barrister. Akhand outlined strategies to mislead officials, emphasizing three primary paths: persecution based on sexual orientation, religious beliefs, or political views.

Building a Fake Narrative

Akhand claimed he could handle the legal aspects but urged the reporter to select a specific identity—gay, atheist, or political activist. Each route required meticulous preparation. For a £1,500 fee, he offered guidance on assembling an asylum application, rehearsing interviews, and creating mock scenarios. However, the reporter would also need fabricated evidence to convince authorities of his authenticity.

“Everyone is being successful, God willing,” Akhand said, assuring the reporter that proper evidence arrangement would ensure success.

To support an atheist claim, the reporter was advised to generate social media posts critical of Islam or the Prophet Muhammad. Akhand suggested that religious clerics would then issue threatening comments, reinforcing the fabricated story. For this, he would connect the reporter with UK and Bangladeshi atheist groups that publish online content. “You could have written under a pseudonym if you were in Bangladesh,” he added, highlighting the lack of verification for such claims.

For the gay route, Akhand proposed creating evidence like club memberships and arranging a same-sex partner. “They will not dig too much into your past story,” he noted, suggesting that private identities are easier to disguise than public ones. The political path, meanwhile, required a more complex legal case against the applicant’s home country.

Akhand qualified as a barrister in 2022 but does not hold a licence to practice. Despite this, he confidently described how the industry thrives on unverifiable stories, with migrants often succeeding in their claims through carefully constructed falsehoods.