How Was Fake Passport Man Allowed to Board Belfast to London Flight?

Ledian Hajdaraj, 21, was jailed for 12 months after attempting to enter the UK at London Gatwick with a fake Italian passport, Daily Dazzling Dawn can report, in a case that has focused attention on how he was able to board a flight from Belfast, Northern Ireland, before being stopped at the final checkpoint in Sussex. Hajdaraj arrived at Gatwick Airport on 14 September 2026 having travelled from Belfast. He was apprehended by officers from Sussex Police’s Project Servator, working with Immigration Enforcement, after they developed reasonable suspicion about the validity of his documents. The case raises a straightforward question: why was the fraudulent passport not detected before he boarded the domestic flight?

Daily Dazzling Dawn understands that officers checked the Italian passport handed over by Hajdaraj and the details he provided, and found they did not match the national database. After further questioning, he admitted he had given a false name and was not Italian. He was correctly identified as 21-year-old Ledian Hajdaraj. During a subsequent search, officers discovered and seized his original passport. He was arrested and transported to custody for interview, where he went “no comment” throughout. He later pleaded guilty to possessing a fake passport in an attempt to illegally enter the UK, and at Lewes Crown Court on 13 October he was jailed for 12 months.

The apprehension at Gatwick demonstrates the role of Project Servator, a national policing tactic used by Sussex Police, including at Gatwick Airport. The force said the tactic is designed to disrupt crime and terrorism while providing a reassuring, highly visible presence. Yet the fact that Hajdaraj reached Gatwick at all has directed scrutiny towards the Belfast end of the journey. The source statement does not say where the document was first inspected, nor does it identify a specific failure by any Belfast authority. But the sequence of events is clear: a man using a false Italian passport and a false name was able to travel from Northern Ireland to England, and was only stopped on arrival at Gatwick.

For domestic travellers within the UK, the case illustrates the importance of checks that can sometimes appear routine. Hajdaraj’s journey began in Belfast and ended at Gatwick, where Project Servator officers and Immigration Enforcement intervened. Daily Dazzling Dawn understands that the passport and the verbal details he supplied did not align with national records, prompting the checks that led to his arrest. The seizure of his original passport then confirmed the false representation. The police account does not disclose the nationality shown on the original document, and no further details of his background were released.

The case also highlights the co-operation between Sussex Police and Immigration Enforcement at one of the UK’s busiest airports. Officers had reasonable suspicion to check the validity of his documents, and that suspicion proved correct. The intervention prevented Hajdaraj from passing through the final checkpoint under a false identity. For border agencies, the outcome is a successful prosecution; for security analysts, the unresolved issue is the pre-departure process in Belfast. The authorities have not said whether the fraudulent passport was examined in Northern Ireland, or whether any screening system flagged it before boarding.

Detective Sergeant Mark Baker, of Gatwick Operations, told journalists: “Project Servator is a national policing tactic used by Sussex Police – including at Gatwick Airport – designed to disrupt crime and terrorism while providing a reassuring, highly visible presence. We will continue to work with partners to identify and prosecute anyone who attempts to illegally enter the UK through false representation or any other means.” His comments underline the operational priority given to document checks at Gatwick, even on arrivals from within the UK.

Hajdaraj’s guilty plea and 12-month sentence at Lewes Crown Court close the criminal proceedings against him, but they do not close the wider debate about domestic aviation and immigration checks. The case will remain a reference point for those asking how a fake passport was used on a Belfast to London flight and why the final checkpoint at Gatwick became the point of detection. Daily Dazzling Dawn understands that the police statement contains no further information about the Belfast screening process, leaving the apparent gap between departure and arrival as the central unanswered question in an otherwise concluded prosecution.