A man battling terminal cancer was kicked out of the UK following a Home Office blunder.
Originally from Lithuania, Aleksandr Kepish worked for the armed forces and served as a chef to Prince Harry when the Duke of Sussex was training at Otterburn Training Area, in Northumberland.
Despite 13 years living in Newcastle, he was deported after being convicted of offences including possessing an offensive weapon and battery.
His friends say he was convicted in his absence as he could not attend court as he was undergoing stage-four cancer treatment, and following a legal fight the deportation order was overturned by the courts.
Now, Mr Kepish says he has no money to fly back - despite being given the all-clear from the Home Office to do so.
He suffered a stroke while at HMP Durham. Despite this, he was deported to his native Lithuania 12-months ago.
Since then he has suffered a second stroke and is now paralysed in half of his body.
In a letter seen by ChronicleLive, Mr Kepish said he requests "entrance back to the UK to pick back up on my cancer and stroke treatment at Newcastle upon Tyne NHS Hospital."
He added: "I am now at stage four cancer and with little or no hope of recovery."
A British friend, Mark Chivers, also from Newcastle, took up his case in the British courts and after providing evidence Mr Kepish had lived in the UK for more than five years, as well as his medical condition, the deportation order was overturned.
Now, Mr Chivers is calling on the Home Office to pay for Mr Kepish to return home which would allow him to continue receiving treatment, and to be among friends for the remainder of his life.
Mr Chivers said: “He has no family left in Lithuania.
“As far as he is concerned, he has lived in England for 13 years in Newcastle, and he classes this as his home.
“He has friends in Newcastle but not people who have the money needed for the air fare.
“We are saying to the Home Office, you have created this situation, you need to bring him back."
Mr Chivers continued: “It’s been a very hard fight to get his deportation revoked. We were not eligible for legal aid.
“But we have got it lifted. The decision was made on May 22 that the deportation order was revoked, but we were only informed four weeks ago,
“There are charities that say they can support him if he returns to the UK, but he needs to be here for that to happen.
“If the Home Office were to say ‘ok, here is a plane ticket’, he could come home tomorrow. If it doesn’t happen soon, given his medical condition, it will become more complicated and more expensive to get him back.”
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Newcastle Central MP Chi Onwurah, who was Mr Kepish's local MP before he was deported, is calling on the Home Office to bring him back.
She said: “I want the Home Office to bring this man home or explain to me why they can’t, before his health deteriorates to the point he can’t be moved.
"They give promises to my staff, raise hopes, say they will act but then go silent.
"If there is a reason he shouldn’t be brought home then he and his loved ones need to know it.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The individual is currently free to travel to and from the UK as an EU citizen.”
