Sharjah Police arrest 720 'illegal' residents

Sharjah Police arrest 720 'illegal' residents

 

• Image Credit: Courtesy: Sharjah Police
• The illegal residents were picked up from industrial areas by police in the first week of April as part of a year-long campaign to target those responsible for crimes such as the sale of counterfeit goods.

Sharjah: Police have arrested more than 700 illegal residents during the first week of April, it was announced Thursday.                          

The arrests were made as part of Sharjah Police's year-long campaign to round up illegal residents who have either run away from their sponsors or overstayed their visa. Up to 720 people were arrested in the city's industrial areas. A senior police official said the majority of illegal residents carry out illegitimate business practices, such as selling counterfeit goods or pornographic films.

"The people we arrested were living in abandoned buildings, workshops, dilapidated houses and sites that were under construction. We are taking strict action against such offenders of the residency rule because they are threatening the security of our society, and are most likely to carry out crimes," said Brigadier Abdullah Mubarak Al Dukhan, Deputy Director of Sharjah Police.

The police campaign, which is being carried out in coordination with the Sharjah Naturalisation and Residency Department, was launched last January in a bid to curb crime in the emirate.  Last February, Sharjah Police arrested 117 housemaids over a two-day raid that targeted residential neighbourhoods, including 65 women who lived in one building, in the area of Al Qasimia and Maysaloon.

Source: Gulf News