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🇮🇸 Iceland /Crime & Justice

Deporting Foreign Murderers Before Sentence Completion Draws Fire in Iceland

From Morgunblaðið · () Icelandic

Translated from Icelandic, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • An Icelandic writer and a former justice minister criticize a policy allowing foreign prisoners to be deported before completing their sentences.
  • They argue this practice sends dangerous messages and could be seen as an "invitation to a hitman."
  • The criticism targets a temporary legal change intended to ease prison overcrowding, particularly concerning serious violent crimes.

A policy allowing foreign nationals convicted of serious crimes to be deported before completing their full prison sentences is drawing sharp criticism in Iceland. Writer Óskar Magnússon has gone as far as to call the practice an "invitation to a hitman," arguing it sends a dangerous message internationally.

invitation to a hitman

— Óskar MagnússonThe writer's strong condemnation of the policy allowing foreign prisoners to be deported before completing their sentences.

Sigríður Á. Andersen, a member of the center-right Progress Party and former Minister of Justice, echoes these concerns. She specifically criticizes a temporary legislative amendment passed this summer, which enabled the early release and deportation of foreign inmates to alleviate overcrowding in Icelandic prisons. Andersen contends that foreign individuals should serve their full sentences in Iceland, especially when convicted of severe violent offenses.

Thereby it is not said, from my point of view, that foreign individuals should not just sit in prison and serve their sentence.

— Sigríður Á. AndersenThe former justice minister's stance on foreign prisoners serving their full sentences, especially for serious crimes.

Andersen also points out that a key justification for this policy was the assumption that foreign prisoners lack ties to Iceland. However, she argues this is not the case for Angjelin Sterkaj, who was sentenced to 16 years for the 2021 murder of Armando Beqirai. High Court rulings indicate Sterkaj has connections to Iceland, including having a child and marrying in the country while serving his sentence. Andersen questions whether prison system conditions or financial considerations are unduly influencing the execution of sentences, potentially overriding the country's penal policy.

In my opinion, they should just sit in prison and finish their sentence, at least when it comes to sentences for such heinous crimes as these.

— Sigríður Á. AndersenThe former justice minister's view on the appropriate punishment for severe violent crimes.

Magnússon further elaborates on the potential consequences, describing the situation as "utterly shameful." He paints a grim picture of how such a policy could be perceived by organized crime abroad, suggesting it might encourage contract killings. "You'll just get a hitman for 30 million [ISK]. That's 10 million upon agreement, 10 million upon murder..." he speculated, highlighting the perceived risk of Iceland becoming a target for such activities.

The fact is that this person has ties to the country, according to a Supreme Court ruling.

— Sigríður Á. AndersenThe former justice minister's argument that the policy's justification of foreign prisoners lacking ties to Iceland does not apply in this case.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Morgunblaðið in Icelandic. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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