We detained the 20 foreign nationals during foreign citizens surveillance operations conducted ahead of Christmas and New Year 2023 celebrations in the jurisdiction of Soekarno-Hatta Airport.
Tangerang (ANTARA) - The immigration office of Soekarno-Hatta Airport has detained 20 foreign nationals for allegedly violating immigration rules and disturbing public order.

"We detained the 20 foreign nationals during foreign citizens surveillance operations conducted ahead of Christmas and New Year 2023 celebrations in the jurisdiction of Soekarno-Hatta Airport," chief of the immigration office, Muhammad Tito Andrianto, said at a press conference on Thursday.

The foreign nationals comprise 17 persons from Nigeria, 2 persons from the Ivory Coast, and 1 person from Ghana, he added.

They were detained after the immigration office received a report from the public about their activities at an apartment in Cengkareng, West Jakarta, which allegedly caused public unrest and commotion.

"After they were investigated, (it was found that) eight of them had overstayed their visas and 12 failed to produce passports. They also argued that they have felt comfort to stay in Indonesia and have no money to return to their country," Andrianto informed.

He said investigators from the immigration office are still investigating their activities to determine whether they committed any criminal offenses.

The foreign nationals have been charged with violating Article 116 of Law No. 6 of 2011 concerning Immigration. If found guilty, they can be sentenced to up to three months in jail and fined up to Rp25 million.

"Meanwhile, the foreign nationals who overstay their visas may be subjected to immigration administrative measures in the form of deportation and entry ban as referred to in Article 78 paragraph (3) of Law No. 6 of 2011 concerning Immigration," he said.

Acting chief of the immigration office's criminal offense section, Yogi Saputra Pribadi Kosasih, said that several of the foreign nationals have stayed in Indonesia for more than five years.

"We are still investigating it. Their modus operandi is that they married and dated Indonesian citizens," he added.

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Translator: Azmi Syamsul M, Suharto
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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