Iranian woman who entered Sri Lanka with forged Austrian passport nabbed during exit

By Kurulu Koojana Kariyakarawana

A female Iranian passenger who had entered Sri Lanka on a forged Austrian passport was nabbed by the Immigration and Emigration Department officials while she was attempting to leave the country with the same passport this afternoon.

The 53-year-old female was apprehended at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) Departure Terminal when she was about to board an Indian Airlines flight to India, Immigration sources said.

A senior immigration official told the Daily Mirror that their computer system at the BIA Arrival Terminal had detected that the Austrian passport used by the suspect to enter Sri Lanka was forged as soon as it was scanned. 

However, the authorities had let her pass and enter the country flagging the Austrian passport in the system to intercept her during her departure to determine the motive of her visit. 

The woman who had arrived in the country on November 8 had tried to leave for India today with an Indian visa obtained from Colombo pasted on her passport.

The authorities have also detected through the system that the woman had left Tehran with her genuine Iranian passport to travel to Dubai prior to her arrival in Sri Lanka.

Upon inquiry, the Iranian woman had failed to produce her Iranian passport and the authorities suspect that she had disposed of it. They suspect the motive of the female was to make her next visit to a European destination for good. 

She was handed over to the BIA Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Unit for further inquiries.