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The Lusaka Regional Immigration Office has apprehended 16 male suspected illegal immigrants in a routine clean-up operation conducted on February 12, 2025.
The operation, targeting Lusaka’s 6 Miles, Kanyama, and Light Industrial Areas, led to the arrest of eight Burundians, four Congolese, a Chinese, one Indian, one Rwandese, and one Zimbabwean.
Zambia’s Department of Immigration Public Relations Officer, Namati Nshinka, confirmed the arrests in a statement issued in Lusaka on Thursday.
He said the suspects were found either working or engaging in trade without the necessary immigration permits at the time of the raids.
“They are currently detained at Kamulanga Police Station and will face charges for various immigration offences,” Nshinka stated.
In a separate operation, the Nyimba Immigration Office detained 23 undocumented Ethiopian nationals aged between 14 and 25.
They were intercepted by officers from the Department of National Parks and Wildlife in the late hours of February 11, 2025, at the Unyanya Checkpoint while traveling in a Lusaka-bound grey Toyota Regius vehicle, registration number ARC 4874.
“The driver, suspected to be Zambian, fled the scene and is currently on the run. All 23 suspects are being held at the Nyimba Correctional Facility pending further formalities,” Nshinka stated.
He said the recent operations in Lusaka and Nyimba were part of the Department’s ongoing efforts to curb illegal immigration.
From February 4 to February 12, 2025, a total of 267 individuals from various nationalities were apprehended for immigration-related offences across the country.
Additionally, on February 11, 2025, the Nakonde Immigration Office secured the conviction of 30-year-old Rwandese national Evode Ndukibwimana for unlawfully returning to Zambia after being previously removed.
Ndukibwimana was apprehended on a Lusaka-bound Power Tools bus on January 25, 2025, and later sentenced to 12 months imprisonment with hard labour without the option of a fine.
This conviction brought the total number of immigration-related convictions between February 4 and February 12, 2025, to 104.
During the same period, the Department of Immigration successfully removed 110 illegal immigrants from Zambia and refused entry to 26 individuals who failed to meet entry requirements.
“The Department of Immigration reminds all foreign nationals that illegal entry and engaging in work or trade without the appropriate permits are serious offences punishable by law,” Nshinka warned.
He urged individuals intending to enter Zambia or currently in the country to ensure their stay is lawful to avoid legal consequences.
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