Man held over fake passports

A 25-year-old man from Eastbourne, East Sussex, has been arrested in Thailand after fake passports were found hidden in his luggage.

James Wilson was arrested on Monday night at Bangkok's international airport with 100 fake French passports and 50 fake Belgian passports.

He told officials they belonged to a German friend and he was delivering them to Brussels where they were to be sold.

His arrest follows the detention of a Malaysian at Bangkok airport last Friday with 115 fake Spanish passports which he was trying to take to Italy.

Immigration officials said the cases were not linked.

Last June, Thailand was criticised in a European Union report which described it as a major centre for passport forgery, heightening fears that global terrorist networks could be benefiting.