The Hill Palace police in Thripunithura have arrested six suspected Bangladeshi nationals who were allegedly staying illegally at Eroor in Kochi, Kerala. The men were arrested from a scrap dealer’s shop at Karukappadom Road near Eroor on Thursday following a tip-off, an officer said on Friday. They had been working at the shop for some time, the police said.

The arrested were identified as Rakiv Shaba, 24, Muhammad Sohal Faraz, 33, Tarek Abdul Monnan, 21, Sogir, 18, Maidhi Hazida, 32, and Muhammad Agin, 39, the police said.

Police sources said the identity cards and other documents recovered from the arrested persons were found to be fake.

The accused have been charged with entering or remaining in India without required travel documents under Section 21 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 and forgery under Section 336(2) and 340(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

The police said a detailed probe would be conducted into how the accused reached Kerala and who facilitated their travel. The arrested persons will be produced before a court on Friday afternoon, the police said.

The arrests by the Hill Palace police comes close on the heels of the Kuruppampady police in Ernakulam rural limits apprehending a suspected Bangladeshi national who was allegedly staying at Asamannur, Kothamangalam, and working at a plywood factory there. Earlier this month, the Palarivattom police had arrested 10 suspected Bangladeshi nationals for staying in the city without valid documents.