Inp.polri.go.id - Jakarta.  Soekarno-Hatta Immigration Office in Tangerang has arrested four foreign citizens involved in the use of fake passports during a surveillance operation at Soekarno-Hatta Airport. The four men, identified by their initials as MHAH, FAIA, IH, and MA, hail from Iraq, Syria, and Sudan, and are part of an international human smuggling network, antaranews.com reported. "They aimed to reach third countries, namely Germany and the Netherlands, seeking better opportunities," Arfa Yudha, the Head of Intelligence and Law Enforcement at Soekarno-Hatta Immigration, said on Tuesday (20/2/2024). He said that preliminary investigations indicate that these passport fraudsters were entering Indonesia for the first time. All of them are believed to be part of a larger network involved in human trafficking, prompting ongoing investigations into their connections within Indonesia and internationally. "The use of fake passports is part of a strategy employed by syndicates aiming to reach third countries, usually circling around Asian countries like Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines to deceive immigration authorities," he explained. (mg/inp/pr/nm)