According to local media, three Vietnamese males who attempted to enter Germany using fake passports have been given jail terms of six months. One of them also had to do time in prison for supplying a fake passport.

Nguyen Van Hung, 27, was detained while attempting to board an aircraft to Berlin on Sunday, August 6, according to police findings. He had shown a passport from Vietnam that did not belong to him.

Tran Dinh Giap, an 18-year-old, was also discovered trying to travel under a fictitious identity when he was discovered in possession of a Dutch passport that had not been given to him.

The third person, 54-year-old Tran The Xuong, was given a one-year prison sentence since he was reportedly in charge of getting the 18-year-old’s Dutch passport.

The three Vietnamese males were accused by Inspector Frankie Sammut of possessing and attempting to use identification credentials that had not been legitimately given to them in order to travel under false pretenses.

Inspector Sammut added that a group of Vietnamese students had come to Malta a few months earlier to learn English at several language institutes. Several of these students attempted to leave their home countries after finishing their education in order to work in Germany, but they were unsuccessful.

This circumstance resulted in issues with the Maltese government and strained ties with their German counterparts. Additionally, Malta incurred costs for the return of these people from Germany, leading Inspector Sammut to vehemently defend the six-month prison term.

Martin Farrugia, the attorney for Nguyen Van Hung and Tran Dinh Giap, on the other hand, expressed worry about any racial profiling that might have affected the arrests.

The Chief Immigration Officer must get Hung’s passport right away so that it can be evaluated further, the court said. Additionally, it suggested Hung be housed in the Young Offenders Unit.

Despite the court’s comment that Tran Dinh Giap, 18, appeared younger, the Zejtun resident affirmed during the proceedings that his claimed age on the paperwork was accurate. After entering a guilty plea, he was given a six-month prison term.

Last but not least, 54-year-old Tran The Xuong, a Vietnamese citizen living in Slovakia, was also charged. Martin Farrugia, the attorney for Xuong, alerted the judge of a conflict of interest before the trial started. Inspector Sammut additionally reminded the court that Xuong had been captured on August 5th while traveling with Giap. During the arrest, Xuong was discovered to be in possession of Giap’s Dutch passport, which he had shown to immigration officers.

After further investigation, the police learned that Xuong was traveling on a passport that belonged to a Vietnamese woman who wasn’t there. Xuong acknowledged collecting at least €20,000 in payment for his services in a statement given to the police.