Footage of Yaqub Ahmed on the flight to Turkey showed holidaymakers demanding his release, with one shouting: "You’re free, man."

Travellers shouted 'they’re separating him from his family and ‘take him off the plane’ before he was led off by officials escorting him.

The 29-year-old was seen thanking those on board for their support as they cheered and clapped.

But The Mail on Sunday reports Ahmed had been sentenced to nine years in jail for his part in the gang rape of a 16-year-old in 2007.

Another member of his gang, Ondogo Ahmed, is later reported to have fought for Islamic State in Syria where he is thought to have been killed.

The paper reports Ahmed and three others attacked the girl after a night out in London’s Leicester Square.

They all denied rape but were found guilty at Wood Green Crown Court and each jailed for nine years.

Ahmed is said to have spent four years in prison and after his release the Home Office ordered his deportation.

Following the passenger's intervention he received a temporary reprieve while officials try to place him on another flight.

But the process could take months and Tory backbencher Philip Hollobone fumed: "We need to deport these people and members of the public should not be allowed to obstruct the proper course of justice."

A Home Office spokesman said: "All foreign nationals who are given a custodial sentence will be considered for removal.

"Those who abuse our hospitality by committing crimes in the UK should be in no doubt of our determination to deport them and we have removed more than 43,000 foreign offenders since 2010."