UN diplomat dodges NYC rape rap thanks to diplomatic immunity: cops

[wbot]

A United Nations diplomat was accused of raping one of his neighbors in Upper Manhattan over the weekend — but NYPD cops released him because he has diplomatic immunity, authorities said Monday.

Charles Dickens Imene Oliha, 46 — a career diplomat for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in South Sudan — was arrested in Sunday’s alleged sex assault on a woman inside her apartment around noon, according to a police report obtained by The Post.

Oliha was taken into custody on suspicion of rape and brought in for questioning, cops said.

But once he informed detectives from the NYPD’s Special Victims Unit that he was a diplomat, investigators confirmed he had immunity and swiftly released him without formally charging him, police said.

UN diplomat dodges NYC rape rap thanks to diplomatic immunity: cops

Charles Dickens Imene Oliha, 46 was arrested in connection to the broad daylight sex assault on a woman inside her apartment, the sources said.

nypost.com

 

[wbot]

Ah good ol diplomatic immunity. Disgusting

 

[wbot]

Charles Dickens was regularly seen passed out drunk in the street apparently. Great diplomat.

South Sudanese diplomat accused of raping neighbor is a 'drunk'

Charles Oliha, 46, was known to neighbors in Fort George, New York, as a drunk. None of them believed him he was a diplomat because of how he behaved, DailyMail.com can reveal.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[azbob]

Was this the best or worst of times?

 

[Cray]

What a POS. Diplomatic immunity can be waived in certain circumstances by the diplomat's home country, especially if the crime is unrelated to their role as a diplomat, one would hope this gets escalated to the South Sudanese government.

 

[Cius]

They should strip him of that immunity.

 

[konfab]

What a POS. Diplomatic immunity can be waived in certain circumstances by the diplomat's home country, especially if the crime is unrelated to their role as a diplomat, one would hope this gets escalated to the South Sudanese government.

If the South Sudanese government had integrity, they would strip him of his immunity and allow the police to prosecute him.

 

[Mzezman]

Wasn't there an FBI show episode about this exact thing? Crazy times

 

[Jet-Fighter7700]

good old Diplomatic immunity, commit a crime and get away with it, legally.

surprised it was a diplomat from south Sudan, would have thought our ANC comrades do this as a hobby while posted overseas.

 

[Cray]

If the South Sudanese government had integrity, they would strip him of his immunity and allow the police to prosecute him.

100% agree, response so far has been a bit mixed though..

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...danese-diplomat-drunk-accused-rape-works.html

EXCLUSIVE: Lights out at South Sudan embassy of NYC diplomat accused of rape... as his government claims it'll act 'urgently' to address the scandal - but refuses to say where he is and the State Department dodges questions

On Wednesday, there were no employees at the South Sudanese Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, where Oliha has worked for the last several years as a counsellor.

The lights inside the office were turned out and the door locked when DailyMail.com visited.

Staff at the building said they hadn't seen Oliha since last week, and that only a few employees have come and gone from the office since then.

Not sure if this is business as usual or if the staff went to ground to avoid questioning...

 

[ProfA]

Surely he should be deported home at the very least?

 

[Hamish McPanji]

.

 

[wbot]

Jip

Best way to revoke that immunity for guys like this

 

[ShaunSA]

Diplomatic immunity is diplomatic immunity

Pointless reeing when we make the rules

 

[Hemi300c]

Just make him have a fatal car accident

 

[Grant]

Ah good ol diplomatic immunity. Disgusting

There is nothing disgusting about diplomatic immunity. It works very well across the world.

What is disgusting is the conduct of some diplomats. Its unlikely they set about to commit crimes knowing they have immunity, the immunity offers a "get out of jail free" card when they do happen to commit a crime.

There are also differing levels of immunity - depends on the position of the person at the diplomatic mission.
So here we have a career diplomat - he enjoys full immunity from criminal & civil prosecution.
The State Dept can deregister him, stripping him of accreditation and immunity, but that cannot be retroactively applied - so at the time of the crime he had immunity, but from date of deregistrstion no further immunity.

While he was released, it does not mean he is as free as a bird. The State Dept will now request his sending country revokes immunity and allow prosecution. If the sending nation refuses to revoke, he will be deported as persona non grata & warrant of arrest issued. The warrant can only be affected if he tries to re-enter the United States, or enters a US diplomatic mission abroad.

I suspect his country will cut him loose and allow prosecution. He was a representative at United Nations, a representative that has caused his country major embarrassment at the highest level.

 

[Cray]

There is nothing disgusting about diplomatic immunity. It works very well across the world.

What is disgusting is the conduct of some diplomats. Its unlikely they set about to commit crimes knowing they have immunity, the immunity offers a "get out of jail free" card when they do happen to commit a crime.

There are also differing levels of immunity - depends on the position of the person at the diplomatic mission.
So here we have a career diplomat - he enjoys full immunity from criminal & civil prosecution.
The State Dept can deregister him, stripping him of accreditation and immunity, but that cannot be retroactively applied - so at the time of the crime he had immunity, but from date of deregistrstion no further immunity.

While he was released, it does not mean he is as free as a bird. The State Dept will now request his sending country revokes immunity and allow prosecution. If the sending nation refuses to revoke, he will be deported as persona non grata & warrant of arrest issued. The warrant can only be affected if he tries to re-enter the United States, or enters a US diplomatic mission abroad.

I suspect his country will cut him loose and allow prosecution. He was a representative at United Nations, a representative that has caused his country major embarrassment at the highest level.

Yup, I suspect most people from first world countries would never have heard of South Sudan before now..

 

[wbot]

There is nothing disgusting about diplomatic immunity.

Yes there is in cases like this where a rapist is allowed to walk free at all because of his immunity.

It works very well across the world.

Clearly

 

[Pegasus]

Yup, I suspect most people from first world countries would never have heard of South Sudan before now..

 

[nightjar]

Diplomatic immunity is a very elastic "Get out of jail" card and I recall some Saudi or other royalty getting off scot free after various crimes.
In another case in UK, the wife of an American diplomat killed a young cyclist in a hit & run and, although not having immunity, was spirited out of the country by embassy staff.