Two including Sri Lankan arrested in India for swapping boarding passes at airport

The Mumbai Police have arrested two foreigners for allegedly swapping their boarding passes at the airport to travel to two different countries, the news agency PTI reported on Thursday.

The arrested persons are from Sri Lanka and Germany. The incident took place on Monday at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, the report said.

The Sri Lankan citizen, who was travelling on a fake passport, and the German native exchanged their boarding passes in a toilet at the airport for travelling to London and Kathmandu.

The matter came to light after an official of an airline company noticed that the departure stamp on the passport of the Sri Lankan citizen appeared to be forged. The airline official also found that the departure stamp number on the passport was different from the stamp number on his boarding pass.

After realising that he was caught, the Sri Lankan national, who had reached the UK, revealed his original identity following which he was deported to Mumbai on Tuesday. During the enquiry, the report said, he told the police that he wanted to go to the UK for a better career opportunity.

The police have also apprehended the German citizen who had the Kathmandu-bound boarding pass. During the interrogation of the two foreigners, the police found that both stayed in a plush hotel near the airport in Mumbai on April 9 and hatched the plan to swap their boarding passes.

The police have booked both persons under sections for cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy. The cops were also investigating if more people were involved in the crime.