Man and woman handed suspended sentences after using fake passports
The two Chinese nationals were attempting to reach Manchester
A man and a woman have been handed suspended sentences after pleading guilty to using counterfeit passports to fly out of Malta to Manchester on Thursday.
The two Chinese nationals – 32-year-old Lin Qian and 40-year-old Jiang Tong Fa – appeared in court on Friday afternoon.
The pair left China separately after agreeing to pay some €20,000 each to leave the country. Through social media, they found a person who could “help" them reach the United Kingdom.
They received counterfeit Japanese passports while still in China, from there flying to Dubai where they met each other due to being booked into the same hotel by their smuggler.
From Dubai the pair travelled to Qatar and then to Norway, where they were arrested and their counterfeit passports confiscated. They applied for asylum and were sent to an open centre.
During their time at the centre, they received a new set of counterfeit passports and left Norway for France, eventually making their way to Malta.
They were set to leave for the UK on Thursday, when they were arrested.
Qian and Fa confirmed the guilty pleas.
In submissions on punishment, police inspector Karl Roberts observed that while in such cases individuals were usually handed a six-month to one-year prison term, Qian and Fa’s case should be viewed different due to the pair expressing a wish to return to China and drop their asylum requests.
“They paid, or were going to pay, around €20,000 to get to the UK and instead they have been deceived,” Roberts said.
The court handed them a six-month prison term suspended for two years each.
Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo presided.
Police inspector Karl Roberts prosecuted.
Legal aid lawyer Rachel Tua assisted both accused.