A court in Bulgaria has ordered the pre-trial detention of a Nigerian national after prosecutors accused him of presenting a forged residence permit to border officials at Sofia airport.
The Sofia District Prosecution Office said on Tuesday that the order followed a request it filed before the district court.
Prosecutors identified the suspect only by the initials I.A., saying he faces criminal liability for using a forged Bulgarian residence permit.
According to the prosecution, the incident occurred on January 9 at about 9:41 am during checks conducted under compensatory border-control measures for passengers leaving the country.
The prosecution said I.A. presented the forged document to an officer at the border control checkpoint of Vasil Levski Sofia Airport.
Pre-trial proceedings were subsequently opened in the matter, and the suspect was initially detained for up to 72 hours.
A prosecutor later filed a motion before the Sofia District Court, seeking the suspect’s remand in custody.
The court granted the request and imposed the most severe preventive measure of detention, the prosecution said.
It added that the ruling may be appealed before the Sofia City Court.