Three Iraqi nationals arrested at BIA with fake passports

Three Iraqi nationals who had attempted to illegally take wing to UK by producing a fake Cypriot passport have been arrested at the Banadaranaike International Airport today (Feb 15).

The arrested individuals have been identified as a couple along with their seven year old child.

The family is reported to have flown from Iraq to Istanbul in Turkey, then to Dubai, and finally to Sri Lanka. They had reached the country at around 1:30 am on February 11.

Immigration and Emigration Department officials had initially arrested the suspects when they attempted to board a SriLankan UL-503 air carrier which was bound to London, without an air ticket.

Following the arrest, the Department officials had discovered that the family was in possession of a fake passport and had prevented them from boarding the plane.

Rs 6 million would have to be paid as a penalty by SriLankan Airlines to the UK airport if the suspects had reached London, a senior official at the Immigration and Emigration Department said.