Is it objectionable to carry someone else's passport across the UK Border?

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I was watching a UK Border Patrol episode on youtube (relevant bit is at 9:01) where the customs agents at Heathrow confiscated a relative's genuine passport from a Bolivian traveler because the relative was not traveling at the time.

The customs officials did a check and found the passport was genuine. Despite this they decided to confiscate it and hand it over to the local Bolivian embassy.

To my understanding the passport is the property of the other nation, and cannot be confiscated without strong justification. The traveler was not even penalized or cautioned, which strengthens my feeling that it was not illegal to carry the passport.

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