A Nigerian national who tried to enter Sri Lanka using a forged passport of Bahamas was arrested by the immigration officials at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Katunayake and was deported.

The 31-year-old man was identified as a real estate agent in Nigeria.He had arrived in Liberia from Nigeria and then had travelled to Morocco. After arriving in Qatar, he left for Sri Lanka by Qatar Airways flight QR-654.

He had presented the passport belonging to the state of Bahamas to the immigration officials and on the basis of suspicion, the chief immigration officer has forwarded his documents for investigation to the border control unit at the BIA.Once it was confirmed that the passport was forged, he has said that he applied for a visa to come to Sri Lanka on several occasions since 2022 but had no success. After all attempts were failed, his father had prepared the Bahamians passport.

As Nigerians continue to be accused of financial frauds such as breaking into ATMs and withdrawing money by entering fake data in Sri Lanka, they are only allowed to enter Sri Lanka following a strict screening.