Colombo, October 16 (Daily Mirror)- An Iranian national who tried to enter Sri Lanka by impersonating an Italian national was intercepted by the Immigration and Emigration Department officials at the Bandaranaike International Airport today.

Immigration sleuths at the BIA Arrival Terminal took a 40-year-old Iranian national in for questioning on suspicion after he had tried to apply for ‘on arrival visa’ by using the details of an Italian passport.

The passenger who had arrived in Katunayake around 4.00am today on Air Arabia flight G 9502 from Sharjah had tried to enter the details of his Italian passport to apply for an on arrival visa when the system had flagged it as a lost passport.

The Immigration Department system at the BIA, which is linked with the International Police had red-alerted that the entered details of the Italian passport were either lost or stolen.

The passenger in the meantime had tried to produce his genuine Iranian passport to the Immigration counters at the airport but he was soon taken in for questioning.

A senior Immigration official at the Border Surveillance Unit (BSU) told the Daily Mirror that the motive behind the suspect’s attempts to enter the country was unclear and he was returned to Sharjah on the same flight shortly after.