A 24-year-old asylum seeker just heard that he was going to be deported. He then set his room and the car of one of the Migrant Board’s employees on fire that was parked outside. “I’m a terrorist and will risk a jail sentence for 10-15 years if I get deported” he told another resident before he set his room on fire.

He set his room on fire on the 26th of July, this year, at Åbyanstalten (outside Uppsala, Sweden) in an asylum centre with hundreds of places used to host asylum seekers that are waiting for a decision on whether they could stay in Sweden.

The Migration Board had planned to hold a meeting with the 24-year-old, a Turkish citizen, to inform him whether he was going to be deported or not.

In the evening, a neighbor had a conversation with the 24-year-old, who then told him that he was “a terrorist” from Turkey. He also said that he could not be deported because he risked a long prison sentence in his home country.

At around 3:00 AM, the 24-year-old first set his own bedroom on fire using lighters and a pile of clothes. He then went outside and broke into a car belonging to the Migration Board which was parked outside and set it on fire too.

In an accommodation closest to the parking lot, families, women and children lived, according to a manager.

There was a lot of hysteria, screaming and crying, especially from the children, the manager said during the trial.

Several days after the fire people were still upset. The residents realized that they’re living in a dangerous area and could’ve died.

When the police came to the scene, the asylum seeker was arrested. The Uppsala District Court has sentenced him for damages, attempted murder and will be forced to receive psychiatric care.

In an interrogation with the police, the man told them that he had moved from Turkey after working in the Turkish parliament as an adviser.

He has “stayed in countries where there was war” and feels that “if he gets back to Turkey he will die”, according to the hearing.

The District Court, however, states that the 24-year-old should be deported because he committed “two serious offenses, one of which is very serious”