The deportation of a Tamil asylum seeker was halted after the man was holed up inside an airport restroom for more than two hours, refugee activists claim.
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The 19-year-old asylum seeker was due to board a plane to Darwin Tuesday morning, where the Refugee Activist Collective say he would likely be deported back to Sri Lanka.
About a dozen protesters were gathered outside the bathroom and at the gate from which the flight to Darwin was due to depart.
Aran Mylvaganam, from the Tamil Refugee Council, said the asylum seeker went to the toilet flanked by police officers about 8.15am.
The flight to Darwin was due to depart at 9.15 but was delayed until 9.55, Mr Mylvaganam said. One protester bought a ticket on the flight and had planned to remain standing on board in a last-ditch effort to stop the asylum seeker's transfer.
It is not clear if the Tamil man locked himself in the men's bathroom or if he was being held there.
Police would not allow anyone to enter the restroom when the asylum seeker was inside and officers were seen speaking to Qantas officials.
Mr Mylvaganam said the asylum seeker did not emerge from the bathroom until about 11am, and was escorted to a secure area of the airport.
About 15 minutes later, activists claimed to see the asylum seeker being loaded into a van outside the airport. Mr Mylvaganam believes he is now at the Maribyrnong Detention Centre.
It is believed the Tamil man fled Sri Lanka and arrived in Australia three years ago as an unaccompanied minor.
A Qantas spokesperson said the protest delayed the flight for two hours and inconvenienced a number of customers.
"Safety and security is the number one priority for all airlines and an aircraft is not the right place for people to conduct protests," the spokesperson said in a statement.
The Australian Federal Police said they were called to the airport to assist the Department of Immigration.
" AFP Officers maintained a presence due to protest activity and later assisted Department of Immigration and Border Protection officers in leaving the airport with an escort," an AFP spokesperson said.
"The AFP did not detain or shelter anyone in an airport restroom"
Mr Mylvaganam said he believes the man was taken to the detention facility at Maribyrnong a week ago before being transported to the Broadmeadows facility on Monday evening.
Mr Mylvaganam was made aware of the plans to transfer the Tamil man to Darwin on Monday night.
Last month, a 25-year-old Tamil asylum seeker on board a flight to Darwin was taken off the plane after activists protested his transfer by refusing to sit down.
Mr Mylvaganam said he hoped the Australian government would not deport the 19-year-old to Sri Lanka.
"Sri Lanka is not a safe place for Tamils," he said.
The Maribyrnong Detention Centre directed all questions to the Immigration Department.
The Immigration Department has been contacted for comment.
