A total of 495 alleged victims of human trafficking and illegal recruitment were intercepted in several airports in the country during the first three quarters of the year, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported.
According to the bureau, 325 were found to be potential victims of trafficking and were turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) for investigation.
Meanwhile, 170 are suspected victims of illegal recruitment and were endorsed to the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).
“Despite the challenges brought about by the pandemic, there has been no letup in our drive against human trafficking,” BI commissioner Jaime Morente said.
RELATED STORIES:
2 Pinays offloaded at NAIA for altering age in travel documents
13 Filipinos offloaded at NAIA after presenting ‘fake passes’
Two Dubai-bound OFWs intercepted in NAIA
“We have a mandate to perform in seeing to it that our kababayan are not victimized by these syndicates who take advantage of them. We will not stop until these traffickers and illegal recruiters are put behind bars,” he added.
In total, the BI said 8,413 passengers were deferred departure during the first three quarters of the year mostly for being improperly documented.
Around 90 percent of the passengers were intercepted at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) while the rest were stopped at the airports in Clark, Pampanga and Mactan, Cebu.
