New information uncovered about accused South City child predatorBy KMOV Staff
Published: Aug. 8, 2023 at 11:17 PM EDT|Updated: 18 hours ago
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - New information about a refugee accused of being a child predator in St. Louis City has been revealed by News 4.
According to city officials, Osmani Haji Gul is in protective custody in the City Justice Center, accused of assaulting a six-year-old boy and a 12-year-old in South City in July.
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said the man, seen in neighborhood surveillance footage, grabbed the 6-year-old while they were riding a bike and took them to a vacant residence in the St. Louis Hills neighborhood on July 23. Then, police said, the man sexually assaulted the child.
A source confirmed to News 4 Haji Gul recently immigrated to St. Louis from Afghanistan. News 4 looked at the City’s inmate locator, which shows a
“Hold SK ICE.”Civil rights and immigration attorney Javad Khazaeli previously worked as a prosecutor for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
He said, “Hold SK ICE” means ICE believes someone is an immigrant, not a permanent resident or US citizen.
“Anybody who commits a crime in the United States will be prosecuted first,” Khazaeli said. “If a person is convicted of a violent crime, they will do their time in America. They don’t get any special treatment. They’re treated as harshly as someone who is an American. On top of that, after their time is done, they have the potential of also getting the extra punishment of being removed from America.” ...
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