Thailand to crack down on Nigerians, other foreigners overstaying visas

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The Thai government is set to arrest and deport all foreigners overstaying their visas following complaints of illegal activities, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said on Tuesday.

“Some foreigners came in as tourists and never left, and we didn’t check. We need to launch a crackdown.

“There are currently over 40,000 foreigners in Thailand whose visas have already expired.

“According to immigration police, and the Thai authorities aim to arrest and deport all of them within a month.

“The crackdown comes amid increasing complaints from locals of crimes – most notably scams – committed by foreigners,’’ Prawit told newsmen.

Also Immigration police chief Surachet Hakpal added that in recent months, over 2,200 foreigners have been arrested and charged with petty crimes in 35 separate raids, said.

Hakpal said most recently, a record 369 foreigners were arrested in a raid targeting schools, hotels and restaurants.

He noted that many of those arrested were Chinese, Indian and Ghanaian nationals.

Report says the fines for overstaying Thai visas range from 500 to 20,000 baht (15 to 605 dollars), depending on the length of the overstay. 2018 (dpa/NAN)

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