Two foreign nationals were denied entry into the Philippines after authorities discovered that they were registered sex offenders, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported.
The first, Borje Millert Hultber, a Swedish national, was stopped at Mactan-Cebu International Airport on January 6. Hultber arrived from Sweden via Hong Kong on a Cathay Pacific flight, but the BI received information from Nordic law enforcement that he had been convicted in Sweden in 2023 for possession of child pornography.
On the same day, the BI also denied entry to 52-year-old U.S. national Rene Reyna at Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1. Reyna, who arrived from Los Angeles, was convicted in Texas in 2013 for indecency with a child by contact, with the victim being 16 years old.
Both individuals were not only refused entry but also placed on the BI’s blacklist.
“Philippine immigration laws are clear: individuals with prior convictions involving moral turpitude, particularly crimes against children, will not be allowed entry into our country,” BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said.
“The protection of children is non-negotiable. We encourage the public to report suspicious foreign nationals that might be engaged in activities that threaten our youth,” he added.
