Alvin Tan granted asylum in the US

PUTRAJAYA – A man who sparked controversy 12 years ago, Alvin Tan, has claimed that his asylum application has been approved by the United States (US).

In a recent Facebook post, Alvin, whose real name is Tan Jye Yee said that the approval came after spending several months in immigration detention in the country.

He said that he entered the US by surrendering himself at the Mexico-US border after his international passport was revoked by the Malaysian government.

"Initially, I fled to Singapore, then to the United Kingdom (UK) and later to Mexico.

"From Mexico, I walked towards the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers, informing them that I did not have a passport or visa," he said on Wednesday.

He was subsequently detained and handed over to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), where he was given the opportunity to plead his case for asylum.

"The argument from the Homeland Security Department (DHS) lawyer was very strong, to the point where I almost lost hope," he said, adding that he was surprised when the court eventually ruled in his favour.

Alvin came into the spotlight back in 2013 when he and his then-girlfriend, Vivian Lee May Ling, were charged in the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court for posting a controversial Facebook image.

The picture showed them enjoying a meal with the caption, "Selamat Berbuka Puasa (with Bak Kut Teh... fragrant, delicious, and appetising)", along with a halal logo.

They were accused of committing the offence at 9am on 12 July 2013 under Subsection 4(1)(c) of the Sedition Act 1948.

Additionally, they faced a separate charge under Subsection 5(1) of the Film Censorship Act 2002 for the offence of sharing and publishing pornographic images on the same Facebook page between 9pm on July 6, 2013 and 2am on July 7, 2013.

Alvin later fled to Singapore after the court temporarily released his passport on the grounds that he needed to travel there for filming.