A total of five registered sex offenders (RSOs) were barred by Philippine immigration from entering the country.
Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco expressed his concern on the interception of the five RSOs in different ports of the Philippines in the span of a week.
Barred last August 30 at the Davao International Airport (DIA) was American national Neil David Laursen, 55, who arrived from Singapore on board a Singapore airlines flight.
The following day, officers at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) denied the entry of British national Antonio Stephen Albert Costa, 58. Costa flew to the country using an Emirates flight from Dubai.
Last September 1, another American identified as Benancio Vasquez, 57, was also stopped at the MCIA after arriving from Incheon, South Korea on board a Korean Airlines flight.
On September 4, Troy Delbert Houk, also an American flying in from South Korea, was stopped by immigration authorities after his disembarkation from an Asiana Airlines flight.
Lastly, on September 5, American national Kevin Crispe was intercepted after arriving from Taipei on board a China Southern Flight.
BI alarmed over sex trafficking resurgence
All five aliens were found to be registered sex offenders in their respective countries. A registered sex offender is a person who has been convicted of sex crimes, who are required to register following their country or state’s laws.
Tansingco expressed his concern on the possible resurgence of sex tourism after the reopening of the country’s borders.
“With the return of tourism also comes the return of aliens who will try to abuse our hospitality,” said Tansingco. “We warn these predators not to attempt to enter the country, as we have close coordination with different governments, who provide us information about sex offenders that might attempt to enter the Philippines,” he added.
Under the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940, those who have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, which includes sex offenders, are ineligible from entering the country.
Meanwhile, BI officers assigned at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 arrested a foreigner who presented fake documents last Sptember 5.
In a report to BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco, BI Border Control and Intelligence Unit Head Dennis Alcedo shared that the woman, identified as Zhiqun Liao, 31, was arrested after she attempted to depart for Quanzhou, China on board a Malaysian airlines flight.
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