Sri Lanka Police arrested 17 foreign nationals in coordinated hotel raids in Waskaduwa and Trincomalee on May 14, Newswire reported, in the latest enforcement action against visa overstays after a string of similar operations across the country this month.
The Panadura Walana Central Strike Unit raided a hotel in the Waskaduwa area under the Kalutara North Police Division, taking 14 foreign nationals into custody. The detainees included 12 Chinese nationals aged between 22 and 56 and two Malaysians, all suspected of staying in Sri Lanka without valid visas.
A separate operation by officers from the Trincomalee Police Station the same day raided a hotel in the Murugaripuri area of the Trincomalee Police Division, arresting three Indian nationals aged 49 and 50 for the same offence.
Further investigations are being carried out by the Kalutara North Police and the Trincomalee Police respectively.
The two-coast operation follows the May 14 arrest of 49 Chinese and Malaysian nationals in Colpetty for similar visa violations, the May 8 public-tip foreign-residency reporting drive, and the 628 foreigners arrested for illegal activities tally announced on May 6. Police have intensified hotel and short-term lodging inspections in tourist districts on both the west and east coasts in recent weeks.
