By Ferdinand Patinio
MANILA – A suspected female trafficking victim who pretended to be an International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) agent was barred from leaving by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in Pasay City on Friday.
In a belated report Saturday, the BI said the 34-year-old was supposed to go to Bangkok, Thailand via an AirAsia flight.
Immigration protection and border enforcement section official Bienvenido Castillo III said the victim presented an identification card and a letter from Protective Intelligence Anti-Crime Organization that she is allowed to travel for a holiday.
However, the assigned BI officer noted inconsistencies in her statements and made her go through secondary inspection.
“It was then that she admitted that her documents are fake and that she was recruited via Facebook to work as a household service worker in Thailand,” the BI official in a news release.
The recruiter offered a monthly salary equivalent to PHP40,000, the victim alleged.
The victim was turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for filing of cases against her recruiters.
“Our immigration officers are well-trained to spot inconsistencies and fraud, hence such attempts will not succeed,” BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said. (Ferdinand G. Patinio/PNA)
