Tanzanian Truck Driver Fined K80,000 or Serve a Three-Year Prison Term for Aiding Illegal Immigrants
A 34-year-old Tanzanian truck driver, Rahadahn Ayoub, has been convicted by the Kapiri Mposhi Magistrate Court for aiding and abetting illegal immigrants. Ayoub has been sentenced to a fine of K80,000 or, in default, a three-year simple imprisonment term.
Ayoub was apprehended on June 30, 2024, at Nkumbi Checkpoint while driving a Scania tanker truck with Tanzanian registration numbers T711 DMV and T214 DNA. He was found carrying six undocumented Ethiopians.
The Police initially discovered four Ethiopians on a bed inside the truck and later found two more hidden near the truck’s valve box on July 1, 2024, during a joint operation by Police and Immigration Officers.
The court outcome marks one of the 15 convictions secured by the Department of Immigration between July 10 and July 11, 2024. The three Zambians apprehended alongside Ayoub and the six Ethiopians remain in custody pending further investigations and potential prosecution.
In a related development, the Department of Immigration has reported an increase in the number of Zambians being removed from neighboring countries for violating local laws. Between July 10 and July 12, 2024, 94 Zambians were repatriated. Among them, 86 were removed from Namibia’s Katima Mulilo Town for illegal entry and unlawful stay.
These individuals, primarily from Shang’ombo, Sioma, and Senanga, had traveled to Namibia to work as cattle herders and maids. Some claimed their employers reported them to authorities to avoid paying their wages.
Additionally, eight Zambians were removed by Zimbabwean authorities on July 11, 2024, after being caught straying into Zimbabwean waters for illegal fishing.
The Department of Immigration at Kasumbalesa Border Control also apprehended 20 suspected illegal immigrants during a routine clean-up operation on July 11, 2024. The detainees included 19 Congolese and one Ugandan, who are now awaiting prosecution. This operation brought the total number of persons apprehended for various immigration offenses nationwide between July 10 and July 11, 2024, to 61.
Furthermore, the Department of Immigration removed 32 illegal immigrants from Zambia and denied entry to four foreign nationals who failed to meet immigration requirements during this period.
Namati H. Nshinka, Public Relations Officer for the Department of Immigration, expressed concern over the rising incidents of Zambians being deported for violating the laws of neighboring countries.
He urged Zambians to follow legal channels when migrating, including obtaining necessary travel documents and permits, to avoid arrest, prosecution, removal, and deportation.
