07/06/2023
Immigration service and Nigerian police train consular staff in detecting document fraud
Training on the detection of forged documents
Organised criminal groups frequently use false or altered documents to traffic people for sexual exploitation, organ removal or labour exploitation.
Such fraudulent documents are used to facilitate human trafficking, terrorism, smuggling, drug trafficking, immigration violations and many other crimes.
In the age of machine-readable passports, facial recognition software and iris scanners, a high level of skill may be required to forge documents convincingly. But document forgery is still a common practice of organised crime groups, and well-trained and skilled consular officers will be needed to detect such documents.
The European A-TIPSOM project in coordination with the Nigerian Immigration Service and the Nigerian Police has organised training for Nigerian consular staff to show them how to detect fraudulent documents.
Twenty consular officers from the consulates of Spain, Germany, Italy, Brazil and the United States in Lagos, Nigeria, were trained using intelligence-gathering equipment. The training was provided by specialists from the Nigerian Immigration Service and the Nigerian Police.
In his opening remarks, A-TIPSOM project team leader Federico Millan said that the FIIAPP is committed to supporting the training of more public consulate staff so that they are equipped to detect fraudulent documents.
In his speech, Daniel Losada Miller, Consul General of the Spanish Consulate, praised the role of the FIIAPP and the European Union for hosting the training and said that the training will go a long way in helping consular officials detect fraudulent documentation from suspected organised crime gangs.
