An asylum seeker who made Swansea his home and volunteered throughout the pandemic, leading to him being honoured by the National Lottery for his efforts, was plucked by the authorities from the city and placed in detention
Richard Tshimanga Nomba, aged 50, had been asked to report to a police station on a regular basis while his asylum application was being looked, but during one of the routine visits on August 8, he was detained, before being taken from the police station by law enforcement to Harmondsworth Immigration Removal Centre in Middlesex near Heathrow Airport.
It was the second time he'd faced detention, despite making a big impact on people's lives in Swansea - and, despite having since been released, he still fears it could happen again at any time. He was allowed to leave detention because he said he was a victim of torture in prison in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and is considered vulnerable due to his ill health which he believed had been made worse since he was detained. While in detention, Mr Nomba said he was depressed, anxious and suffered from nightmares and flashbacks of torture. You can get more Swansea news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
