A Sri Lankan family attempting to travel to Kazakhstan via Thailand was caught

A group of Sri Lankan family members who attempted to travel to Kazakhstan via Thailand using fake Malaysian passports, along with a Malaysian woman who assisted them, have been arrested by Thai immigration officials at Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok.

Those arrested are a Sri Lankan woman named Anusha and a Malaysian woman named Livia who aided and abetted her. Anusha's two sons, Merlyn, aged 14, and Sharon, aged 5, were also involved in this illegal migration attempt.

The family initially entered Thailand using their own Sri Lankan passports and then traveled overland from Thailand to Malaysia. Subsequently, they attempted to fly from Malaysia to Kazakhstan via Suvarnabhumi Airport, where the Malaysian national Livia joined them, claiming to be the biological mother of the two children. However, airline officials, observing inconsistencies and irregularities in the travel documents they presented, refused them boarding and simultaneously took steps to inform the country's immigration bureau about the matter.

After missing that opportunity, the group changed their route to Myanmar and then, on June 17, attempted to travel to Kazakhstan again from Yangon via Don Mueang Airport. Thai authorities, acting swiftly, subjected their travel documents to strict scrutiny and conducted this raid. It was revealed that Anusha and her 14-year-old elder son had irregularly used Malaysian passports belonging to other individuals, while the 5-year-old younger son was in possession of a legally issued, genuine Malaysian passport.

Investigations have revealed that an international organized crime syndicate operating from Malaysia is behind this process. International law enforcement agencies in countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, and Sri Lanka had previously issued warnings to regional authorities about this specific trafficking syndicate. The modus operandi of this crime syndicate is to bring Sri Lankan children to Malaysia and obtain genuine Malaysian birth certificates falsely registered in their names. It has been revealed that this trafficking operation then uses these birth records to obtain official Malaysian passports for visa-free entry into European and Central Asian countries.

Thai authorities have taken legal action against the two adult women arrested on charges of passport misuse and criminal conspiracy. Following investigations by welfare officials, it has been confirmed that the two young children are not victims of human trafficking. Accordingly, these minor children have been taken into protective custody under child protection procedures, and Thai authorities are currently coordinating with the Sri Lankan Embassy in Bangkok to arrange for their safe return to Sri Lanka. Thai authorities have further stated that due to such international passport forgery networks operating across several transit countries, steps will be taken to conduct international border checks more rigorously and thoroughly.