The Bureau of Immigration (BI) foiled an attempt by a syndicate to fly seven human trafficking victims out of the country.
BI port operations division chief Grifton Medina said the victims, all women, were stopped last Thursday at the departure area of the at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) terminal 3.
The Dubai-bound Filipino women were barred from leaving after immigration officers found that the documents they presented are fake.
“This should send a signal to these syndicates that there is no letup in our anti-trafficking campaign despite the 2019 nCoV ARD outbreak. Our departure areas remain off limits to human traffickers and their victims,” Medina stressed.
According to Ma. Timotea Barizo, BI’s travel control and enforcement unit (TCEU) chief, the intercepted passengers were caught in possession of fake Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) clearances.
Barizo added the passengers presented validation forms allegedly showing that their papers were checked and cleared by Labor Assistance Center personnel at the airport.
“They admitted during interview that the bogus documents were given to them by their handlers and they were recruited via Facebook to work as domestic helpers in the UAE,” Barizo added.
The women were eventually turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) for investigation.
