Vic: Growing fears over stolen passports
Fears are growing that thousands of Australian passports reported lost or stolen eachyear are falling into the hands of drug traffickers, people smugglers and terrorists.
The Australian National Audit Office has revealed that in the year to June 2002, 32,497passports were reported stolen or lost -- 11,502 of them overseas.
The Sunday Age newspaper says more than 2,000 disappeared after being posted to applicantsby the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
A DFAT spokeswoman has told the newspaper that passport fraud is on the rise.
But she says it's the sorts of people with the inclination and the need to obtain falsepassports -- such as terrorists, drug traffickers and people smugglers -- that's of mostconcern.
A spokesman for Immigration Minister PHILIP RUDDOCK has told the newspaper equipmentused at Australian entry points would pick up a fake passport or one that's been reportedstolen.
AAP RTV kh/jmt
KEYWORD: PASSPORTS (MELBOURNE)
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