The South African Government has deported 97 Nigerians for committing various offences in the country.

Several Nigerians and other sub-Saharan Africans have had their properties destroyed across South Africa in xenophobic attacks that have been condemned by various governments.

While asking its citizens to stop the attacks, the South African government has also blamed illegal immigrants from Nigeria and other countries, as well immigrants who commit crime for the attacks. The government has thus decided to clamp down on such immigrants.

The 97 deported Nigerians arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos on Monday night in a chartered aircraft with the registration number GBB710 from Johannesburg.

Joseph Alabi, the spokesperson of the Lagos Airport Police Command, confirmed the development.

An immigration source speaking on condition of anonymity, said that six of the deportees were returned to the country for drug offences while 10 were arrested and deported for other criminal offences. The others were said to have committed immigration offences in the country.

All the deportees were profiled by officials of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) while those deported for drug related offences were handed over to the Police for further investigation.