Swedish agency admits identity mix-up after deportation

Swedish authorities have admitted to a significant error after mistakenly merging two distinct identities, leading to the deportation of Serhii Baranovskyi. Baranovskyi was expelled from Sweden based on a drunk driving conviction from 2019, a charge he vehemently denies and claims he never faced any legal proceedings for.

“

I guess Migrationsverket must change its decision?

The Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) acknowledged the mix-up following an investigation by the newspaper Dagens Nyheter. Baranovskyi, who has been living in a basement in Georgia since his deportation, stated he never drove a truck, let alone drunk, and has never been detained in Sweden. His expulsion meant he risked being sent to war-torn Ukraine and being separated from his wife in Stockholm.

Baranovskyi initially chose Georgia as his destination after receiving advice, fearing return to Ukraine. The investigation revealed discrepancies, including a mismatch in photographs on a driver's license associated with the drunk driving incident and differences in handwriting. Baranovskyi had been assigned a coordination number starting with '76,' indicating a 1976 birth year, but later received a correct one starting with '79' for his actual birth year. He inadvertently used the incorrect number for administrative tasks like changing his address.

“

I have never even been detained in Sweden.

The Tax Agency's folkbokföringsverksamhet (population registration unit) noted the presence of two coordination numbers in the same context and decided to merge them, believing sufficient investigation had already occurred. However, the agency now concedes this merger was incorrect, stating, "The investigation has not shown any data supporting that the coordination numbers belong to the same person." Consequently, the agency is removing the link between the two numbers, a decision that could prompt the Migration Agency (Migrationsverket) to review its deportation order.

“

The investigation has not shown any data supporting that the coordination numbers belong to the same person.