RE, Re Judicial Review

[1] This is a challenge to a decision of the United Kingdom Border Agency ("the UKBA")/the Competent Authority ("the CA") whereby the UKBA determined that, on the balance of probabilities, the applicant had not been the victim of human trafficking. This was a decision under the "Conclusive Grounds" test.

[2] The applicant is a Nigerian National. She claims that she was trafficked from Nigeria to Portugal under the false pretence of legitimate work in Portugal. This was arranged by a friend of the family known to the applicant as 'P'.

[3] The applicant left Nigeria in and around December 2003. Upon arrival in Portugal the applicant claims she was taken to a brothel and told she would be working as a prostitute. She claims that she escaped her captors in Portugal and fled to Spain in 2006 where she claimed asylum, however the Spanish authorities did not deal with her claim immediately and she was left with no accommodation for several days.

[4] The applicant then claims that she phoned another lady she had lived and worked with as a prostitute under P in Spain. This lady, S, told her that their captors had organised an assassin to harm the applicant's family back in Nigeria. Because of this the applicant then returned to Portugal and to her captors. A further escape attempt was made in 2009.

[5] The applicant arrived in Dublin with a false passport and attempted to use the passport to fly to Canada. She was detected and detained in prison for having false documents between December 2009 and February 2010. She tried to claim asylum in Ireland. She was returned to Spain in February 2010. Upon arrival in Spain she fell back into the hands of her captors and again began working as a prostitute in Madrid.