Bureau of Immigration (BI) officers from Manila and Pampanga intercepted six suspected victims of a crypto trafficking syndicate.
Travel Control and Enforcement Unit (TCEU) Chief Ann Camille Mina reported that three of the crypto trafficking victims were intercepted at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 last January 20, after attempting to fly out via an Air Asia flight to Bangkok.
Mina reported that the trio initially claimed to be traveling on a company group tour, and presented several documentation proving their affiliation with the said local company. However upon inspection, the trio gave highly inconsistent statements, which prompted the officer to refer them for secondary inspection.
During inspection, they admitted that they are bound for Laos, and were offered P40,000 to work as a customer service representative, a sales representative, and a cook in an investment company. They claimed that they were recruited through an agent that they met on social media.
Mina likewise reported that on January 31, officers at the Clark International Airport intercepted three male crypto trafficking victims who attempted to fly to Thailand via a scoot airlines flight.
BI intercepts 6 suspected victims of crypto trafficking
The three also claimed to be working for a local cargo company, and are traveling together on a group tour. However, they later admitted that they were recruited to work as encoders and e-games staff and were offered a salary of 1000 USD by an agent they only met through a social messaging application.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco expressed concern about the growing number of Filipinos recruited by crypto trafficking syndicates to illegally work in business process outsourcing companies abroad.
“There are reports that many of our kababayans are offered work in BPOs, only to end up working for scamming companies abroad,” said Tansingco. “We reiterate our warning not to entertain offers received on social media, and always coordinate with the Department of Migrant Workers when applying for legal work abroad,” he added.
The warning comes after numerous reports of Filipino citizens recruited and trafficked by cryptocurrency scam companies that physically abuse their victims abroad.
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