An Afghan migrant convicted of repeatedly raping and violently abusing his former partner in Berlin has been released from custody after an appeal court ruled that serious judicial delays made his continued detention unlawful, triggering emergency protection measures for the victim.

In June 2025, the Berlin Regional Court sentenced 27-year-old Afghan national Mahmood D. to seven years and nine months in prison following a trial into multiple assaults and rapes committed between 2022 and 2024. However, the verdict was not final because his defense appealed the ruling.

On Jan. 19, the Berlin Court of Appeal lifted the arrest warrant against him, finding that procedural failures by the court violated the legal requirement that appeal cases involving detained defendants must be handled swiftly. Mahmood D. has since been released.

According to reports cited by Tagesspiegel, Berlin’s State Criminal Police Office moved the woman to a secure location and placed her under protection after authorities learned the man allegedly threatened revenge for her filing criminal charges.

The appeal court found that the presiding judge failed to complete the written judgment and trial records within the legally required timeframe, leaving the appeal process stalled for months. Judges described the delays as “massive” and ruled that continued detention was disproportionate.

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The court wrote, “This violation of the principle of expeditious proceedings alone must lead to the revocation of the arrest warrant,” adding that the case showed a “fundamental misapprehension” of the rules governing detention cases.

The judge responsible was removed from his leadership role in December after defense complaints and has reportedly been on sick leave since, with disciplinary action now under review.

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Investigators allege Mahmood D. subjected his former partner to repeated beatings, sexual assaults, and threats with weapons in her home and in vehicles over several months. Police arrested him in May 2024, and he remained in custody throughout the trial until the appeal court decision.

The conviction itself remains under appeal, but the court stressed that even in serious cases, detention cannot continue when delays are caused by failures within the justice system.