Nigerian former senator arrested in Saudi Arabia

Senator Hassan Barata was arrested by Saudi Arabian authorities after he was found travelling with a revoked diplomatic passport and claiming to be an employee of the Nigerian Embassy. Barata was a former chairman of the Senate Committee on Culture and Tourism. He represented the Adamawa South Senatorial District between 2011 and 2015 as a PDP lawmaker. He defected to APC last february but returned to the PDP after losing the APC governorship ticket bid.

According to The Nation, Senator Barata, who is in Saudi Arabia to observe the hajj pilgrimage, claimed to be an employee of the Nigerian embassy there after being arrested; a claim that was found to be false.

The Federal Government has earlier directed the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) to retrieve diplomatic and official passports from unauthorized holders.