Two South Australian men were arrested at Adelaide Airport (13 March, 2023) and charged for allegedly travelling under false identifications.
The Angle Vale man, 21, and Burton man, 19, were flying from Perth to Adelaide on Monday (13 March, 2023) when staff became suspicious the travellers were not using their real names.
The AFP was alerted to the incident and officers met the plane on its arrival at Adelaide Airport.
AFP officers questioned the pair and further enquiries revealed one of the men had allegedly breached conditions of his bail on unrelated charges.
The man, 21, faced the Adelaide Magistrates Court yesterday (14 March, 2023) charged with:
- One count of travelling using false identification information, contrary to section 376.4(2) of the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is one year imprisonment; and
- Two counts of breach of bail, contrary to section 17(1) of the Bail Act 1985 (SA), as applied by section 4 of the Commonwealth Places (Application of Laws) Act 1970 (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is two years’ imprisonment.
The man was released on bail to reappear on 19 May, 2023.
The Burton man is expected to face court on 23 May, 2023, charged with:
- One count of travelling using false identification information, contrary to section 376.4(2) of the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth); and
- One count of fail to comply with direction to provide identity information at an Airport, contrary to section 3UU(1) of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is a $5500 fine.
AFP Acting Superintendent Paul Everingham said the AFP would continue to work with aviation partners to ensure travellers abided by Australian laws.
“The fraudulent use of identity documents can facilitate other criminal activity,” he said.
“It is important to know who is travelling, both domestically and internationally, and the AFP is working to identify and disrupt potential threats.”
The AFP continues to encourage airport staff and the public to report any inappropriate or suspicious activity when travelling.