A TOTAL of 53 illegal immigrants, including 25 Guyanese, were detained Friday in Trinidad when a joint task force swooped down on known hideouts along the East/West corridor.The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service said the two-hour exercise, which was held at varying points along the Priority Bus Route (PBR), from the Aranguez Savannah to Morvant Junction, began at 6 am, and initially led to the detention of 107 foreign nationals.
Apart from the Guyanese, those held were 39 Jamaicans, 18 Chinese, five Ghanaians, six Colombians, five Nigerians, two Cubans, one Filipino, two Dominican Republic nationals, one Vincentian and five Grenadians. A total of 16 women were among the detainees.
The Police Service said the task force stopped passenger vehicles travelling along the PBR and foreign nationals suspected of being illegal immigrants were detained after being unable to verify their immigration status at the time.
The detainees were taken to the Immigration Investigation Department, Port-of-Spain, where further enquiries were conducted leading to the release of 54 foreign nationals whose status in the country was verified and found to be legal.
The remaining foreign nationals were taken to the Immigration Detention Centre, Aripo, pending further investigations as preliminary enquiries suggest they are in the country illegally.