The Department of Immigration has apprehended seventy (70) Ethiopians in a suspected case of human smuggling. This was in an operation carried out in Chazanga, Lusaka, which started in the late hours of Saturday, 14th October, 2017 into the morning of Sunday, 15th October, 2017.
The suspects who are all males, where found in a small house situated near Chazanga Primary School and did not have any documentation on them at the time of the raid. Investigations into this matter are ongoing.
This brings the total number of persons arrested in suspected human smuggling cases to 113 in a period of one (01) month. This goes to show that the crime is quite rife in Zambia. At the same time, the fact that we have arrested such a huge number in a short period of time should serve as a warning to perpetrators of such crimes that we are relentless and that we shall continue to pursue them.
Smuggling a person across a Zambian border or agreeing to be smuggled are serious crimes which attract penalties of between 15 and 20 years imprisonment.
We wish to thank members of the communities for their cooperation during these operations. It is because of such cooperation that we are making headways in curbing these transnational crimes. We appeal to the members of the public to continue reporting suspected cases of human trafficking, smuggling and illegal migration to the Department.
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