Bermuda is considered by illegal immigrants to be a “soft target” for access to the United States, Government revealed yesterday.

The news comes in the wake of a breach of the Island's immigration barrier by two Chinese nationals last month who were able to stay for three nights after arriving from London.

The man and woman were caught trying to board a flight for the US on July 29 at Bermuda International Airport - with fake Japanese passports.

Government said yesterday it had tightened up immigration procedures following a similar incident last January which saw three Chinese nationals and one Singaporean able to slip onto the Island, only to be stopped by US Immigration officers when they tried to depart Bermuda and fly to the US.

On July 29, Chen Fe Ming - a man - and Qin Hua Zheng - a woman - were denied entry to the United States and remanded into custody.

“You are on the other side of the world,” said Magistrate Will Francis told the pair when they appeared in court last week.

Zheng and Ming were taken to Hamilton Police station where they told Police they were Chinese nationals and would cooperate with the process of getting themselves back to China.

Police have not been able to establish their correct identities - presumably with the People's Republic of China - in London, so Acting Senior Magistrate William Francis decided a two week roll over was necessary to come up with more information about the two. Ming and Zheng have been remanded in custody until August 13 when they will be mentioned in court again.

Chief Immigration Officer Dr. Martin Brewer this week said the recent breach was the result of an error by an airport official, who The Royal Gazette understands to have been a summer student who has subsequently been transferred out of the Immigration Department.

He said the new stricter policy requires anyone arriving with a Japanese passport to be referred to a secondary inspection by a senior officer, had not been adhered to by the junior officer.

“This failure was what resulted in the passengers being landed in Bermuda,” he said.

Asked whether the Island was being targeted by “Coyotes” - people who charge fees to help slip people across borders - Dr. Brewer admitted: “Yes, the Chinese man has said that Bermuda is considered a soft target for access to North America.”

But he said the Immigration Department was capable of stopping people arriving on fake Japanese passports now because “Immigration has copies of the documents used in the earlier incident and can detect these false documents now”.

He said Zhen and Ming had arrived with passports that were genuine except for the data page.

“That the passports were fraudulent could not be detected with the naked eye.”

Their arrests bring to a total of five the number of Chinese nationals, as well as one Singaporean, who have tried to use the Island as a staging point to enter the US.

In January, Zhang Feng Zhen, 27, Zheng Minxiang, 22, Huang Zhen Yong, 22, and Hedong Sun, 38, were stopped by officials at Bermuda International Airport when it became clear that their Japanese passports were false and that they did not speak their supposed native language.

After four months in custody in Bermuda, during which time Police established the quartet's identities, they were finally deported back to their countries of origin, accompanied by six immigration officers at a cost of tens of thousands of dollars.

Asked why Bermuda Immigration had not detected that Zheng and Ming did not speak Japanese, Dr. Brewer said Ming spoke fluent English and added: “None of the Customs or Immigration officers are trained or required to speak foreign languages.”

And when asked, he added: “It is always helpful if the public pass on information to the Department of Immigration about suspicious guests.”