A BLAENAU Gwent man was shocked when he received two separate passports belonging to people from England after applying for his first ever passport.

The 24-year-old, from Ebbw Vale, received the documents last month after sending off his application to the Newport passport office.

He was getting ready for his first every holiday abroad, to New York, next year and had sent off his application last month.

Expecting the passport office to only send back his birth certificate and his parents’ birth certificates, which he had used as proof of identity, the man was pleasantly surprised when he received a bulky letter.

It was only when he opened it that he got a shock, discovering two passports belonging to people from Leicester and Lancashire.

The man immediately rang the passport office branch in Newport and was told to send the two passports back, which he did.

He said: “I was just baffled. It’s just very odd, there was no explanation. They were just in there and weren’t in another envelope that had been accidentally posted.

“It’s just feels like this has happened before and it’s not a surprise to them.

“I’m more concerned these ended up in the hands of those who are not very honest. That’s what I wanted to stop happening.

“All their data has been stolen. It could have been a huge thing for them. I’ve got my stuff back which is great but for those other people they’re still wondering what’s going on.

“From their point of view, I can only imagine what it would be like.”

A Home Office spokeswoman said: “HM Passport Office takes the security and integrity of the passport application process very seriously and a full investigation into this incident is being carried out.

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused.”