Police arrest 25 overstaying African nationals

In a joint operation, the city police and Foreign Regional Registration Office (FRRO) officials raided several places in the Whitefield division early on Saturday morning and arrested 25 African nationals found overstaying in violation of visa conditions. The landlords who rented the house were also booked.

The police also recovered 150 grams of marijuana and 50 grams of cocaine from two Nigerians, among the 25 detained.

Nearly 120 policemen raided numerous houses in teams at TC Palya, Brindavan Layout, Sigehalli, Priyanka Nagar, Anandpura and Margondanahalli, among other places in KR Puram, around 5.45 am.

DCP, Whitefield, Abdul Ahad said the raids were conducted following inputs from FRRO officials, who informed them about the overstaying foreign nationals.

He said cases have been booked and they will be sent to judicial custody. FRRO will then decide over their deportation. The police are also contemplating booking cases against landlords for renting out their houses to foreign nationals without following the prescribed norms.

“We have booked house owners who rented out their places to the accused foreigners. There are rules and regulations about renting houses to foreign nationals. The landowner should possess a copy of their passport and visa, and should know their period of stay. They should also intimate the jurisdictional police station about the foreigners’ stay, but none of the owners are following these norms,” Ahad said.

Among the 25 people detained, the police found 150 grams of marijuana from Stanley, a Nigerian, and also 50 grams of cocaine from his friend. Inquiries revealed that they were not only overstaying, but were also wanted by Central Crime Branch (CCB) officials in cases related to the NDPS Act.

Police sources said most of the African nationals were from Nigeria and Uganda, who had come to India on study and business visas, but ended up overstaying, hoodwinking the officials here.

The FRRO officials carried a detailed study on the foreigners overstaying throughout the state from various sources, including colleges where they get admitted, a senior police officer said.