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Tag: Stowaway

  • Japa: Six Nigerian stowaways rescued off Brazil, Canary Islands

    Japa: Six Nigerian stowaways rescued off Brazil, Canary Islands

    Four stowaways were discovered and rescued by crew members off the southeast coast of Brazil, after spending a harrowing 13 days concealed in a compartment on top of the rudder of a Liberia-flagged ship that embarked from Lagos, Nigeria.

    The federal police confirming their safe retrieval said on Tuesday that the ship left Lagos on June 27 and the four stowaways had hidden in a compartment located in a submerged section of the ship.

    Upon discovery, the four men, who claimed to be Nigerians, were found to be in good health and well-fed, but lacked documentation to confirm their nationality.

    A police official told AFP, “The men rescued claim to be Nigerians, but they did not carry any documents confirming their origin.”

    Meanwhile, in another incident, the Spanish coastguard successfully rescued two Nigerian migrants who had stowed away on the rudder of a ship arriving in the Canary Islands from Togo.

    The migrants were found and brought to safety on Monday night in the port of Las Palmas and were immediately taken to a hospital for evaluation.

    The Guardia Civil police confirmed that the migrants were 19 and 22 years old.

    After being released, they were transferred back to the ship responsible for their return to Togo.

    The port police tweeted, “The migrants were taken to a hospital. They were later released and were transferred back to the ship, which has to return them to their port of origin.”

    Visual evidence shared by the Las Palmas maritime police on Twitter portrayed the precarious situation in which the two stowaways were found.

    The images depicted them huddled on the rudder, beneath the ship’s hull and just above the waterline of the MSC Marta.

    Investigations revealed that the MSC Marta’s last port before reaching the Spanish archipelago was Lome, the capital of Togo, hinting at the point of origin for the stowaways.

    The ship, which had departed from Lagos, Nigeria, on July 2, made a stop in Togo on July 4, indicating that the migrants had remained onboard for at least seven days.

    Under Spanish law, stowaways who do not seek asylum must be returned by the ship’s operator to the port of origin.

    The Canary Islands, owned by Spain, continue to be a popular yet dangerous route for African migrants attempting to reach Europe, given its geographical proximity and significant maritime traffic in the region.

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  • FAAN reveals identity, nationality of Lagos Airport stowaway

    The Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Captain Rabiu Hamisu Yadudu on Saturday in Kano revealed the identity of the stowaway that climbed the Azman Airline at Murtala Mohammed International Airport as Nigerien-born Usman Adamu.
    According to him, FAAN has launched thorough to investigation which warranted the suspension of four staff, with a view to ascertain the remote and immediate causes of the security breach, adding that, “With regards to the identified suspect, investigation is ongoing to ascertain his intent, be it criminal or not and his mental/psychological state.”
    Briefing Reporters at Malam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) in reaction to the incident, Yadudu said, “the suspect, identified as Usman Adamu suspectedly of Nigerien origin, and who claimed to be residing at No 1 Araromi Street , Iyana Ipaja on the 19th July, 2019 was reported to have appeared at the domestic end of the taxi way and attempted to gain access to the aircraft, while it was taxing to the holding point.”
    According to him, “the pilot alerted the Air traffic control and the message was intercepted by the Aviation Security control monitoring centre who mobilized the patrol teams to the incident. He was apprehended, detained and is currently with the Airport Police Command, as our investigation progresses.”
    The FAAN, Managing Director, however, admitted that, “the FAAN authority considers this incident a serious security breach and an Airside incursion. This is unfortunate and most embarrassing bearing in mind the huge effort and resources dedicated to the maintenance of the integrity of Airside and Airport safety.
    “We do understand that the security wheel is ever revolving with new and emerging threats daily and we have been working with all our stakeholders and the regulatory agency (NCAA) in addressing our living security challenges.”
    The FAAN boss recalled that the same suspect had been arrested before in the same airport, pointing out that, “the patrol security team arrested the same suspect on the night of Sunday the 14th of July 2019 within the Airport premises.”
    He added that, “his profile pictures were taken and he was subsequently evacuated out of the Airport to a very far location in accordance with our standard procedure. We are now reviewing this procedure in the light of this incident.”
    Yadudu noted that, “at the conclusion of this investigation, all officers who are found negligent in the discharge of their assigned duties shall be held fully accountable.”
    He, however, Yadudu said FAAN assures the travelling public that security measures would be scaled up at the airports across the country so as to forestall future occurrence.