Greater Noida: 'Some' foreigners detained for lack of papers escape from police custody

"Some" of the 60 foreigners, detained in Greater Noida for staying in the country without valid travel documents, escaped from police custody on Thursday night, officials said.

The detainees were being held at the district police lines in Surajpur from where they fled, a police spokesperson said without elaborating on how many of them managed to escape.

"A probe has been launched into the matter and further proceedings are underway," the spokesperson said.

Sixty foreign nationals were detained and faced deportation after police searches in Greater Noida on Wednesday found them staying in the country without documents.

Almost all of those held are from eight African countries, including Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Ivory Coast and Angola. Twenty-eight of them were women, officials said.

During the police inspection, 222 bottles of beer marked for sale in Delhi, 3.5 kg cannabis, six laptops and 114 Airtel sim cards were seized from their residences, they added.