AN EMPLOYEE attached to the Immigration Division's head office at the Ministry of National Security in Port of Spain was questioned last Friday after senior Immigration officials uncovered what they believe is an online passport appointment racket, in which the contract worker is believed to have collected hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past six months.

Multiple sources told the Express the scheme involved manipulating the online appointment system, with applicants purportedly being offered faster passport processing dates in exchange for cash payments.

The employee was questioned by senior Immigration officials last Friday after investigators reviewed CCTV footage recorded earlier this month, which allegedly showed the person receiving what authorities believe was financial compensation in a small brown envelope from a man on the ground floor of the building in exchange for securing an online passport appointment.