Media reports have identified the two passengers on board missing Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 who used stolen passports are Iranians.
A BBC Persia report quoted an Iranian friend of one of the passengers as saying he had hosted the two travellers in Kuala Lumpur after they had arrived in the city from Tehran, before they departed on their flight to Beijing.
The friend claimed the two purchased the stolen passports as they wanted to migrate to Europe, according to the report.
The pair were travelling using passports belonging to 30-year old Christian Kozel of Austria, and 37-year old Italian Luigi Maraldi.
The flight tickets registered to the stolen identities were purchased by an Iranian in Pattaya, Thailand.
Travel agent Benjaporn Krutnait, booked the tickets through a business contact whom she only knew as “Mr Ali”. She said that his first request to book cheap tickets to Europe for the two men was made on March 1.
She had told The Financial Times that it was quite common for people to book tickets through middlemen who then retake a commission.
“Mr Ali” had asked for the cheapest route to Europe for his clients and did not mention the specific booking Kuala Lumpur-Beijing, which she claims is unlikely behaviour by would-be terrorists.
Ms Benjaporn initially reserved one of the men on a Qatar Airways flight and the other on Etihad. But the tickets expired when Ms Benjaporn did not hear back from “Mr Ali”.
The Financial Times said when “Mr Ali” contacted her again on Thursday, she rebooked the men on the Malaysia Airlines flight through Beijing because it was the cheapest available.
Both Malaysia and Thailand host large and established Iranian communities.
US-led sanctions on Iran have taken their toll on the Islamic republic’s economy, prompting many young Iranians facing hardship and unemployment to seek ways to travel to Europe, North America or Australia, through legal or illegal means.
Story: The Malaysian Insider
