Nigeria’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Ambassador Kabir Bala, has said that over 6,000 Nigerians were being investigated for various crimes in the country.

Bala disclosed this on Wednesday in an interview with Channels Television in Johannesburg, South Africa.

He explained that the crimes range from drug-related offences to murder, fraud and armed robbery.

Noting that the statistics were from the South African Police Service, the envoy said: “We have to look at it from a proper perspective so that we don’t tilt the balance. And then we overlook the fact that some of our nationals engage in things that are not legal here.

“We have 6,089 of them having cases that are being concluded or investigated and some of them in prison, we have them.”

The diplomat, however, explained that the accused persons, whether Nigerians or other nationals, have the right to fair trial before being convicted if found guilty in line with the laws.