Sharjah police arrest 300 illegal migrants

Sharjah police arrested 300 illegal migrants who violated residency laws in one of Sharjah’s biggest raids, UAE daily Gulf News reported.

Police raided the Sharjah industrial accommodation on Friday night where the labourers, mainly of Asian origin, were residing. The police told Gulf News that the accommodation was used for illegal activities and as a hideout for the residents.

Evidence for the illegal activities was found, including untraceable telephones that were used for international calling services. A safe was also found with evidence but the police did not reveal the contents, the report added.
 
The arrest comes in wake of a series of efforts to deal with illegal residents, including a 60-day grace period for them to leave the country, the UAE government announced last year in December.

Charges were not pressed on the 61,826 illegal residents who fled the country during the period, the newspaper added. Last month 24 warehouses in Sharjah were raided by the police in another large scale arrest of illegal residents.

Visitors in the UAE overstaying their visa are fined AED 25 per day. A fine of AED 50,000 is imposed on a resident who employs an illegal worker including a jail term on the second offence, the report added.   

UAE residents can report illegal suspects on the toll-free number 80080.