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Police in Rumphi and Chitipa have arrested 80 foreigners from Ethiopia and Somalia who took advantage of porous borders to sneak into the country.
Rumphi police public relations officer Victor Khamisi said the foreigners were arrested at Chitimba road block when they were trying to evade the police.
He said the foreigners were in two minibuses.
The PRO added that from Tanzania, the aliens used a canoe to cross the Songwe River and then hired two minibuses to travel to Lilongwe.
Asked how they managed to pass all the roadblocks from Songwe, Khamisi said they were disembarking from their buses whenever they neared any police checkpoint.
“When they neared the roadblock, they got off the bus and started walking through the bush and board the bus after passing the checkpoint,” he said.
The PRO said the foreigners told them that they were going to a refugee camp but doubted their explanation, saying he suspected they were involved in criminal activities.
“We know there is instability in their countries but if they want refuge in the country, there is no way they can hide. They must be doing some criminal activities,” he said.
He also said that the foreigners were only travelling at night because they thought that it is when security is relaxed.
Khamisi said they would be taken to the border with Tanzania where they came from.
In Chitipa, 24 Somalis were arrested at the Boma and at Lufita a day after they arrived from Tanzania.
Chitipa Police PRO Solemn Chunga said those arrested at the boma were trying to buy food while those found at Lufita claimed they were going to Karonga.
He said they were taken to court where First Grade Magistrate Billy Chiumia slapped them with a three-month suspended sentence and ordered that they should be deported back.
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