[size=14pt]500 Nigerians in UK prisons – Tafida[/size]
•Says Britain no more a safe haven
From UCHE USIM, London
Monday, October 17, 2011

High Commissioner of Nigeria to the United Kingdom, Dr. Dalhatu Sarki Tafida has revealed that about 500 Nigerians are languishing in United Kingdom prisons for various offences ranging from immigration issues to criminal activities.

He further said the UK was no longer a safe haven where Nigerians could easily travel to and hustle to eke out a livelihood. Speaking with journalists at the Nigerian Carnival award dinner in London on Saturday night, Tafida said the number of prisoners today was far less than what he inherited when he assumed office three years ago.

According to him, well over 1,000 Nigerians were clamped into prisons as at the time he was appointed the high commissioner, a development he said tainted the image of Nigeria in no small way. He, however, regretted that many of the nation’s citizens in the UK were surviving via illegal means like credit card fraud, internet scams, obtaining by trick, immigration paper forgery, among others.

He warned Nigerians wishing to come to visit, study or settle in the UK to ensure they had genuine papers and confirmed businesses before travelling.“They should make sure they have a source of livelihood. UK is no longer a safe haven. It’s easier to live in Nigeria without a job than live in UK without a job. So unless you have a job, a confirmed job, don’t come here. Number two, make sure your papers are complete and not forged. That is what gets a lot of Nigerians in trouble and some end up in prison,” he stated.

To deal with the problem, Tafida said the commission was talking with the British government on how to assist Nigerians working in the UK get necessary papers, where needed, to ensure they were not embarrassed or deported.

“We have opened our doors to anyone who needs assistance. We’ve also created a dialogue between us and the UK government. We’ve a UK/Nigeria forum pertaining to immigration, where those who are qualified to stay, even if they don’t have passports, we try to grant them, especially once we have evidence that the government is willing to grant them stay. This is ongoing and you can investigate to confirm,” he explained.

He also revealed that the commission had been assisting Nigerian prisoners in the UK via various welfare packages.

http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2011/oct/17/national-17-10-2011-004.html

more than that sir.

werepeLeri:

more than that sir.

WAAAY more than that There are more Nigerians in UK prisons than any black group. it used to be the Caribbeans but
the stats have reversed. Sure there is crime committed by every group but methinks the UK is especially trying to rid itself of African descendants. They are even trying to deport the Niaja and Caribbean prisoners to their respective countries to finish out their sentences. smh.

MsDarkSkin:

WAAAY more than that There are more Nigerians in UK prisons than any black group. it used to be the Caribbeans but
the stats have reversed. Sure there is crime committed by every group but methinks the UK is especially trying to rid itself of African descendants. They are even trying to deport the Niaja and Caribbean prisoners to their respective countries to finish out their sentences. smh.

Jamaicans rule the UK prisons.
There's no stopping them.

^ ^ true the yardie over populated uk prison

http://rjrnewsonline.com/news/local/significant-decline-number-jamaicans-uk-prisons

There has been a significant reduction in the number of Jamaicans in the United Kingdom prison system over the last seven years.

Jamaicans once accounted for the bulk of the UK prison population.         

However Jamaica's High Commissioner to London, Anthony Johnson told a Diaspora Community meeting that at the end of June, the number of Jamaicans in UK prisons stood at 942, down from a high of 2,808 in 2003.

Of this number, women constitute a large proportion.

The High Commissioner says of those Jamaicans in UK prisons, 722 are facing the possibility of deportation and most are associated with drug offences.

RJR News understands that the number of Jamaican prisoners in the UK has been declining for some time.

Many have served their sentences and have been deported, while technology has reportedly stemmed the flow of drug trafficking from Jamaica to the UK.

Jamaica's Minister in charge of Diaspora Affairs Senator Marlene Malahoo-Forte told the Diaspora community meeting that the deportation issue is a challenging one and it seems Jamaican prisoners are being dealt with unfairly in the UK.

Responding to concerns that prisoners could be sent to serve time in Jamaican prisons, the Senator says she disagrees with the issue in principle as Jamaica lacks the capacity to accommodate them. 

The announcement follows reports in the British media last month that UK Prime Minister David Cameron is considering deporting Jamaican prisoners.

^^ this 'drop' was in 2010 alone.  and as you can see about 722 of the 942 will be deported.
there are over 1,000 Nigerians in UK prisons to date. 500 of which are confirmed Nigerian Nationals.

^ ^ google friend I live in caribbean community in bham I swear down jamo are always in nd out of prison.