Hajj and Umrah Pilgrims' Passports Found Scattered in BSD Tangsel; Immigration Investigating
A pile of passports, suspected to belong to Hajj and Umrah pilgrims, was found scattered in the Jalan Letjen Soetopo area of BSD, Serpong, South Tangerang, Banten. The discovery went viral on social media after a video surfaced showing the travel documents strewn along the roadside.
The Tangerang Special Class I Non-TPI Immigration Office has addressed the incident, expressing suspicion that the passports may have been deliberately disposed of. Hasanin, the Head of the Tangerang Immigration Office, stated that officers conducted an inspection of the site on Sunday night (7/6).
“During the inspection, the pile of passports could no longer be found. However, officers did find two passport covers that had been separated from their biodata and passport pages,” Hasanin said in a written statement on Monday (8/6).
According to Hasanin, the findings indicate that a number of passports were previously scattered around the BSD bus stop area. Additionally, officers discovered several pieces of Hajj deposit receipts that are believed to be related to the passport documents found at the location.
This discovery has led Immigration to suspect that the site was used as a dumping ground for travel documents belonging to prospective or former Hajj pilgrims. Immigration is now working to identify the owners of the passports using the national passport issuance system. This measure is being taken to determine the origin of the documents and to identify the party responsible for the presence of the passports at the discovery site.
“We will check the passport numbers in the issuance system to obtain further data or information regarding the owners or the guarantors of these passports,” Hasanised.
In addition to data tracing, Immigration officials are coordinating with relevant agencies and gathering statements to uncover the cause and identify the parties suspected of discarding the documents. The investigation is ongoing, with Immigration looking into the possibility of intentional disposal of the passports and other supporting documents in the BSD area.