Overstaying Bangladeshi group arrested by Immigration Dept.

By Kurulu Koojana Kariyakarawana   

A group of over 30 Bangladeshi nationals who were overstaying their tourist visas was taken into custody by the Department of Immigration and Emigration officials who raided a guesthouse in Seeduwa yesterday afternoon.  A team of the department’s Investigation Division following a probe learnt that a group of foreigners were residing in Seeduwa and made the arrest.  Upon inquiry the officials found that the group had arrived in Sri Lanka in February and March on a 30-day tourist visa and had illegally exceeded their stay in the country. 

According to immigration sources 34 male Bangladeshi nationals aged between 19 to 54 years had been taken into custody. A senior official from the Investigation Division told the Daily Mirror that necessary measures will be taken to immediately remove the group and send them back to Dhaka. Likewise, over 100 Bangladeshi nationals had been arrested and removed from Sri Lanka in the past few months, the official said.  In the meantime, the foreigners will be transferred to the department’s Detention Centre in Welisara. Officials from the Immigration and Emigration Investigation Division are conducting further inquiries.