Student visits police department to obtain documents: Arrested for living in north Cyprus without a residence permit

A student who went to the police department in Lefkosia north Cyprus to obtain in a document was arrested and detained after it was determined that she has been living illegally in the country.

The individual, identified only as QO, a Nigerian student in north Cyprus had gone to the Police Department in Lefkosia at around 3:00pm on Wednesday May 22, 2024, to obtain an immigration entry-exit document when she was arrested.

She was taken to the Lefkosia district court on Wednesday May 23 charged with living in the country without a residence permit.

Police told the court that during the immigration check, it was determined that QO had been living illegally in the TRNC for 540 days since September 30, 2022.

Police stated that the investigation conducted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed that the suspect had no residence permit and requested that she be sent to prison before trial.

Evaluating the testimony in court, the judge stated that the crime of residence permit is a crime that carries a prison term of up to 6 months and is becoming more common day by day, and ordered the suspect to be sent to prison for a period not exceeding 20 days.