The BI reported the interception of four more victims who attempted to depart for Singapore.
Ann Camille Mina, BI Travel Control and Enforcement Unit Chief, shared that the four victims attempted to depart via a Jetstar Airlines flight to Singapore last March 1.
“We received intelligence information from the National Bureau of Investigation and the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) NAIA Task Force Against Trafficking about the departure of the victims, that were said to be actually bound for Cambodia to work in offshore gaming operations,” said Mina. “We were able to intercept their attempt and prevent them from being victimized abroad,” she stated.
The four were escorted by a female recruiter traveling with her four-year-old child. During interview, the victims claimed that they were employees of a manpower agency, but had numerous inconsistent statements.
They eventually admitted that they paid their recruiter P10,000 each as down payment for their trip.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco then renewed his warnings against job offers of illegal recruiters.
“These recruiters are crafty with their schemes, by using families with children as couriers,” said Tansingco. “We have seen how victims have been exploited, and even physically abused abroad. Aspiring OFWs should not accept offers they receive via social media. They should always secure work abroad through the Department of Migrant Workers.
Crypto scam victims intercepted at NAIA – BI
The victims and their recruiter were all turned over to the IACAT for further investigation.
Meanwhile, BI shared that the recent batch of repatriations from Myanmar arrived on Saturday.
The two victims, a male and a female, were both former overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) who arrived via a Philippine airlines flight from Bangkok.
Both victims were reportedly recruited in UAE, and flew to Thailand as tourists on October 2022 with another Filipino they only met on the flight.
They were said to have been recruited by an agent that promised that expenses will be deducted from their salaries. The two were offered a salary of around P48,000 a month to work as customer service representatives in Thailand.
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