Four arrested with fake or stolen travel documents

FOUR people were arrested at Larnaca Airport yesterday in separate incidents involving fake or stolen travel documents.

A 29-year-old Iranian man was arrested while attempting to catch a 2.30am flight to Prague using a fake Italian ID and passport. Suspicions were raised when the ID card he presented did not contain a hologram. When questioned, the man is said to have told police that he had bought the two fake documents in Iran for €2,000, and admitted to entering Cyprus through Tymbou (Ercan) airport in the north on 21 July. The man, who was also carrying an Iranian passport, was remanded in custody for five days by Larnaca District Court.

A second Iranian man was arrested at 9.20am when he presented a forged Swedish passport to board a flight to Rome. When questioned, the man is said to have admitted to being in Cyprus illegally since 2003, and to having bought the fake passport for €6,000. He was also remanded in custody for five days.

A 21-year-old Turkish man was arrested at 10.20am on suspicion of criminal impersonation, while trying to travel to Paris using a genuine Bulgarian passport. Under questioning, the man is said to have admitted travelling from Istanbul to the north of the island after buying the passport for €1,500. He will appear before Larnaca District Court today.

A 38-year-old Turkish woman was arrested as she attempted to travel to Zurich on a forged Bulgarian ID. When questioned, she was not able to explain how she acquired the document or how much she might have paid. The woman will also appear before Larnaca District Court today.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.