5 October 2008
Lagos — The 2nd Secretary, Political, British High Commission, Abuja, James Maclaughlin has sent a note of caution to Nigerians intending to stowaway to the United Kingdom on the new resolve of the country's immigration agency (UKBA) to tackle such illegal moves.
Illustrating the fresh posture of the agency towards illegal immigrants, Maclaughlin recalled that recently, a couple, who arranged a bogus wedding in order to legitimise their stay in the UK found themselves spending their honeymoon in prison.
"Rather than coast home with a wedding band and a glittering ring in proper fingers, the couple ended up being joined to the wrists of officers of the law by handcuffs." the diplomat said.
He revealed that the groom, a 37-year old Nigerian male was arrested shortly after exchanging wedding vows with his bride, a Portuguese woman at a Church in Dulwich, South-East London, quoting an article in Mail-online.
The "couple" had been living apart in Southwark, also in South-East London before the sham marriage. They had no inkling that the London Metropolitan Police were on their case until they both showed up at the church for the arranged marriage. Now the Nigerian groom is facing deportation for entering the United Kingdom illegally.
He also said that a search by officers at another London address revealed several international passports bearing the same name. Two people arrested with that incident are now facing the full wrath of the law. Possession of false passports is a criminal offence under British law.
UKBA officials in Nigeria now warn would-be illegal immigrants that they would face the full wrath of the law if they break immigration rules by either surreptitiously entering into the UK or using false travel papers. Hugh Ind, of the UK Border Agency, told the Mail: 'These arrests demonstrate that the UK Border Agency and the Metropolitan Police are working hard to combat illegal immigration. 'We will leave no stone unturned to crack down on those attempting to abuse our immigration laws.'
According to statistics, sham marriages are on the increase in the UK and the government is hell bent on doing something to curb it. According to the Mail, no less than 10,000 sham marriages are conducted yearly in the UK. In one council, Brent in North London alone, a fifth of all marriages are believed to be bogus.
A UKBA official in Abuja explained that this situation will no longer be tolerated and that those who have benefited from this illegal act in the past would not be spared.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
