Immigration stopped 11 ‘imposters’ with fake passports

Eleven people were stopped at border control while trying to enter the Maldives using fake passports this year, the immigration department said on Wednesday.

The 11 people used a false identity and passports of people with similar facial features, the immigration department tweeted. They were denied entry and “returned to the last port of embarkation as per Annex 9 of [the International Civil Aviation Organisation] Convention.”

Two men with fake passports were held on Sunday and Monday this week. Immigration declined to reveal nationalities citing “border security reasons.” 

Immigration Controller Mohamed Ahmed Hussain ‘Hanafy’ praised the “skill and competence” of immigration officials who detected the identity fraud.

More than 100 people are denied entry and deported every month, he said, which includes cases of fake passports that went undetected in other airports.