Woman arrested as police probe forged travel documents case

A 24-year-old woman was arrested for possession of forged documents after she attempted to board a plane to Germany using a Belgian passport.

The woman is reportedly not cooperating with police and has not provided any answers.

The incident occurred at 9pm on Monday night, according to deputy Paphos police chief Michalis Ioannou, who told local media that the passport initially appeared to be valid but that there are major discrepancies observed in the photo section.

Ioannou said that the Interpol database does not list the passport as stolen or missing.

He further stated that the woman, of African origin, attempted to board a flight from Paphos airport to Cologne, Germany.

The Cyprus Mail has previously reported on the issue of dodgy documents being used in attempts by migrants to gain access to mainland Europe.

The report from August found that stricter controls at airports due to the pandemic, plus the recent increase in flights are believed to be the main reasons why so many cases of African migrants using fake or stolen travel documents to get to other EU countries have recently come to light.

Paphos airport in particular is chosen because it mainly caters for low-cost airlines and because it offers flights to France, the preferred destination for the mostly Congolese migrants who attempt the trip.