Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Joel Viado has ordered the immediate dismissal of personnel allegedly involved in the escape of South Korean fugitive Na Ikhyeon in Quezon City.
Viado confirmed that criminal complaints have been filed against the implicated BI staff based on CCTV footage and testimonies pointing to potential collusion.
“This footage is damning evidence—this is not mere negligence,” Viado stated, referring to the footage that allegedly showed BI officers aiding Na’s escape after a hearing for an estafa case. Na, wanted in South Korea for fraud, escaped from the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office after attending the hearing, sparking a manhunt.
Viado emphasized that the case is now a full-blown criminal matter, with the Department of Justice (DOJ) taking over.
He also placed other suspected immigration personnel under preventive suspension and vowed to combat corruption within the BI.
“The days of corruption and illicit deals in the Bureau are numbered,” he warned.
