10 June 2022 08:36 am Views - 124
By Kurulu Koojana Kariyakarawana
A group of Sri Lankans who attempted to migrate to Australia illegally by boat who were apprehended and deported , arrived at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in the early hours of yesterday.
The group of 15 Sri Lankan nationals on board a special flight sent by the Australian Border Force (ABF) landed at the BIA at around 5.00am yesterday, immigration sources said. Sources at the Department of Immigration and Emigration said the group were taken into custody at the BIA yesterday and an inquiry was commenced with their statements being recorded.
The group had been then handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) who had later produced the illegal migrants before the Negombo Magistrate’s Courts and were ordered to be remanded.
The group is suspected to have left Negombo on a boat a few weeks ago however their boat had developed engine trouble in the vicinity of Christmas Island off the Australian external territory, where they had been rescued by the ABF.