Prime Minister Andrew Holness released a Press Update on the Indian Nationals who illegally entered Jamaica
On **May 6th, 2024**, Jamaican authorities launched an investigation into a possible human-smuggling operation involving Indian nationals that arrived in Jamaica on a charter flight. The **218 passengers**, mostly Indian nationals, were initially denied entry upon their arrival.
The chartered flight they arrived on had transited through Dubai and had also made a stop in the Egyptian capital Cairo. During this stop, an **Uzbek national** boarded the flight before it proceeded to Jamaica. Furthermore, another citizen of Uzbekistan who had arrived on an earlier flight and was initially given landing permission, later had his landing revoked and was detained during the investigation of the Indian charter flight.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness released a Press Update on the issue.
According to Holness, an arrangement is in order for the safe departure of the flight which carried the Indian and Uzbekistan citizens to Jamaica. The update states that the Minister of National Security is overseeing the departure of 253 people which includes the crewmembers.
Holness dispute the TVJ Reports, claiming the flight had arrived legally in Jamaica on May 2, 2024, having received the requisite approval for operation from the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority. The Press Release stated that despite having all the necessary arrangements for arrival and departure, the passengers were refused entry by immigration official based on security concerns uncovered during their processing at the airport.
The Report stated that there were two passengers on the flight that did not appear on the submitted passenger manifest. This led to further investigation by the Passport Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) and based on those enhanced check, the decision was taken by PICA not to grant the passengers leave to land in Jamaica.
The passengers were allowed to disembarked the plane and stay at a hotel in Kingston due to aviation regulations of minimum period of rest before clearance is given to safely operate. He stated it was impractical to detain them at the airport and noted that government had not foot any of the Bill for their hotel stay.
The passengers are accounted for and is currently at the Norman Manley International Airport awaiting the finalization of arrangements for their departure, the statement said.
Interestingly, the Uzbek National caught the attention of security and government officials in the United States. As per Radio Jamaica’s checks, the aircraft, a white and blue Airbus A-340 registered in Germany, was impounded and remains on the tarmac at Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport.
It was noted by law enforcement sources that the charter airline did not indicate its arrival in Jamaica on Friday. Additionally, no passenger manifest was sent prior to the arrival as is a requirement. However, Civil Aviation officials still allowed the aircraft to land.
It was later discovered that the charter had no arrangements to transport the passengers back to their destination, which raised the suspicions of the authorities. Despite being denied entry, the passengers were permitted to stay at the ROK Hotel in downtown Kingston, under police guard.
Radio Jamaica News has revealed that the passengers were actually booked in at the hotel, despite not having paid for their rooms. This fact seems to be the reason why officials allowed them to stay there. However, some of the passengers were reportedly seen walking around, shopping, buying food, clicking pictures on the waterfront, and enjoying the scenery. There have also been reports of some passengers possibly having left the hotel completely.
Now, it remains to be seen what the outcome of this investigation would be.
The authorities are currently probing into a potential smuggling operation that is believed to involve hundreds of Indian nationals who are reportedly crossing through Jamaica. This criminal activity seems to be of a large scale, with a significant number of individuals being used as part of the operation.
The authorities have not disclosed many details about the case, perhaps to uphold the integrity of their investigation. Nonetheless, it is clear that the situation is being taken very seriously.
The news of a smuggling operation of this magnitude is likely to have a broad range of implications. It might affect bilateral relations between India and Jamaica, and it could also impact the international image of both countries, especially when it comes to their respective stances on human rights and immigration.