Nigerian national held with fake passport at Raxaul

Motihari: A Nigerian citizen was arrested on Thursday at the immigration office checkpost in Raxaul while attempting to enter India from Nepal using a fake passport and visa of another country. He is being questioned by police and security agencies.The man has been identified as Uche Joseph Okai alias Balo Antonio, born on May 20, 1977, in Nigeria. He was attempting to infiltrate India with the passport and visa of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire.According to immigration office sources, during document verification he presented a passport of Côte d’Ivoire, though he is a Nigerian citizen. Records show that he first entered India on Apr 15, 2012, at Mumbai on a three-month medical visa issued on his Nigerian passport. After the expiry of his visa, he stayed illegally in the country for more than 12 years.He was eventually deported from Mumbai airport in Dec 2024 by the foreign regional registration office (FRRO) Mumbai, which issued him a Leave India Notice before sending him back to Nigeria.Officials said after deportation, he travelled to Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan airport and then attempted to cross into India through Raxaul using a fake identity with altered name, date of birth, country details, passport number and visa number of Côte d’Ivoire. He was intercepted during checks at the immigration office in Raxaul.He has since been handed over to Haraiya police station in Raxaul for further action.East Champaran SP Swarn Prabhat said, “It is being investigated what his intention was behind re-entering India despite being deported.”