Spanish authorities have finally begun deporting more than 60 Bolivian nationals caught in a fake visa scam.
Ten days ago, dozens of Bolivians with false documents arrived at the port of Barcelona aboard the MSC cruise ship Armonia.
I was denied entry due to falsified visa documents. Barcelona government officials said four of the 69 people who had relatives in Spain would be allowed to enter the country.
The rest are returning to Santa Cruz, Bolivia, with the ship's operator, MSC Cruises, paying for their flights. that much The ship arrived in Barcelona After a transatlantic cruise that started in Brazil.
Spanish immigration officials denied them entry, claiming they held fraudulent Schengen visas. The Schengen visa allows travel across 29 countries in the EU bloc.
The ship was anchored in port for two days
MSC Cruises denied negligence, claiming the visas had been verified in Brazil and all appeared genuine. Due to this problem, the MSC Armonia remained in port for more than two days and calls at other ports in the Mediterranean were canceled. The next cruise has also been cancelled.
that much MSC Armonia Eventually, they were able to leave Barcelona without the Bolivian being taken off the ship and detained on another ship. They were later transported to the port terminal's transit area. Bolivian embassy officials and the Spanish government have been holding diplomatic talks to quickly resolve this issue.
Police said the visa was a 'crude' fake.
Some family members of Bolivian passengers have claimed they were victims of fake visa fraud, possibly perpetrated by South American travel agencies.
But last week Spanish police said they had not ruled out the possibility that the passengers were deliberately carrying false visa documents and intended to enter Spain illegally.
A police source told local El Pais news outlet that the documents were forged 'very crudely'.