A man repeatedly entered the UK illegally to access NHS treatment for a “serious and debilitating” liver condition before being caught in Wales.
Guta Sima was arrested at Fishguard harbour in Pembrokeshire in January with two passports in different names.
Sima, 30, of no fixed abode, had been deported from the UK in 2017 but re-entered illegally multiple times.
His barrister told Swansea Crown Court the immigration offences were “the desperate acts of a desperate man” who could not get the health treatment he needed in Romania, reports WalesOnline.
Guta Sima appeared at Swansea Crown Court
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The court heard that between December 2022 and January 2025, Sima repeatedly entered the UK in breach of his deportation order. He typically flew into Luton, Gatwick or Stansted airports on Ryanair or Wizz Air flights.
His final entry came at Fishguard Harbour on January 10 this year where Border Force officers apprehended him. At the time of his arrest, he was found with two Romanian passports bearing different names.
The court also heard that Sima had exposed himself to a civil enforcement officer in Camberwell, London, in October 2023.
The incident occurred after the officer had just issued him a parking ticket, near the London hospital where he was receiving treatment for his liver condition.
Leathley told the court the exposure was not done for sexual gratification but as an “insult” to the traffic warden. “I submit Guta Sima is not a pervert,” the barrister added.
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Sima used Ryanair flights to reenter the country
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Sima had previously been served with a deportation notice in December 2017 and was deported two weeks later. The deportation order remains in force until December 2027.
David Leathley, representing Sima, told the court his client had a “serious and debilitating” liver condition which could be life-threatening if untreated. The barrister said treatment for the condition was not available in Romania.
“Regrettably he made the decision to come to the UK because the UK offers him life-saving treatment that was otherwise denied to him,” Leathley said.
Despite having family in the UK, the court heard Sima had no wish to live in the country and wanted to return to Romania.
The judge noted that members of the public were “concerned about those who do not contribute to the system using the very limited resources available.”
Sima has six previous convictions for 11 offences including shoplifting, driving matters, and a public order offence.
He pleaded guilty to 10 counts of knowingly entering the UK in breach of a deportation order and two counts of seeking to enter by deception. He also admitted the exposure offence when he returned to the dock.
Judge Catherine Richards sentenced him to 12 months in prison for the immigration offences, with a one-third discount for his guilty pleas. He will serve up to 40 per cent of that sentence in custody before being released on licence.
