Hinarang at hindi pinaalis ng Immigration officers sa Ninoy Aquino International Airport ang 30 undocumented overseas contract workers, na pawang nagpanggap na turista patungong Middle East.
Ayon kay Bureau of Immigration (BI) port operations chief Grifton Medina, ang 12 lalaki at 18 babae ay pasakay na sa Emirates Airlines flight patungong Dubai nitong Biyernes nang harangin ng mga tauhan mula sa travel control and enforcement unit (TCEU) ng tanggapan.
“All of them initially claimed they were going to visit a friend or relative in Dubai for a vacation and presented as proof their tourist visas and return tickets,” ayon kay Medina.
“But inconsistencies in their statements prompted the immigration officers to doubt their purpose, so they were referred to the TCEU for secondary inspection.”
Sinabi ni Grifton na kalaunan ay inamin ng mga pasahero na magtatrabaho sila sa abroad at ang kanilang travel documents ay ibinigay lamang sa kanila noong araw na iyon ng kanilang handler, na nakilala nila sa labas ng airport.
Itinurn over ang mga inaresto sa National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), upang magsampa ng human trafficking charges laban sa kanilang recruiters.
Jun Ramirez
