KOHAT, June 1: A young Nigerian man booked under section 40 of the Frontier Crimes Regulations (FRC) is undergoing illegal detention in Kohat despite having been declared innocent by the authorities three months back. In a letter in February, the NWFP home department had directed the district coordination officer Kohat to repatriate him to his country if he had valid travelling documents. However, during the period of detention his visa and return air ticket expired.

A month back he was taken to Peshawar airport by the tribal authorities who requested an airline to take him to his country free of charge but their request was turned down, an official of the frontier region administration said.

Emeka Austine had come to Pakistan on a visit visa on Feb 27, 2005, to see varieties of precious stones.

He was told that the northern areas of Pakistan are famous for their beauty and rich in precious stones. At that time Swat was receiving heavy snowfall and he decided to stay in Karachi where he met a man who invited him to Kohat.

According to Emeka, when he was passing through Darra Adamkhel, he was attracted by the landscape and disembarked to look for jems in the mountains.

While he was roaming in the bazaar, he was arrested by the khasadar force and handed over to the APA. Later he was shifted to Peshawar for interrogation by a joint investigation team.