An unidentified Nigerian woman left the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos State, on Saturday without arrest despite being caught on record admitting to the crime of ripping her husband’s Nigerian international passport to shreds in the presence of Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) officials.
In the now-viral video, the visibly angry woman admitted to the act with the phrase “na me tear am”, a Pidgin expression that means “I’m the one who tore it”.
Afterwards, she took her two children away from her husband, who was too shocked to utter a word before storming off in a huff.
“Bring my children out for me. If you want to sleep there, you sleep there. Come and go. This is Nigeria. Na here you dey,” she angrily told her husband.
While still reeling in the shock of his wife’s action, airport officials urged the man to remain calm, advising him that, as a man, his silence was the best course of action in the situation.
The video also shows pages of the torn passport scattered on the floor as onlookers remained shocked.
This Happened yesterday at Lagos State airport. A lady destr0yed her husband's international airport on their arrival. 🙆🙆 pic.twitter.com/Gaf9Izz4IJ
— CHUKS 🍥 (@ChuksEricE) August 11, 2024
WHAT DOES THE LAW SAY ABOUT RIPPING THE INTERNATIONAL PASSPORT?
According to the Passport (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, destroying or tampering with a Nigerian passport is a criminal offence, as seen in the video. Section 1, Subsection 1, states that it is an offence to “(c)unlawfully alter, tamper with, or mutilate any passport or any pages thereof” or “(I)attempt, aid, abet, counsel, procure, or conspire with any other person to commit such an offence.”
Section two of this act says that “Any person found guilty of an offence under paragraphs (b) to (i) of subsection (1) of this section shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year.”
This is because a passport is considered property of the Nigerian government, although it is in the individual’s care.
Section 451 of the Criminal Code Act in Nigeria says that “Any person who wilfully and unlawfully destroys or damages any property, is guilty of an offence, which, unless otherwise stated, is a misdemeanor and he is liable, if no other punishment is provided, to imprisonment for two years.”
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Subsection 7 of the Criminal Code Act says that “(7) If the property in question is a document which is deposited or kept in a public office, or which is evidence of title to any land or estate in land, the offender is guilty of a felony and is liable to imprisonment for seven years.”
