BUREAU of Immigration (BI) officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 intercepted two women suspected of being fake Filipinos last July 10.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco shared that the two women, identified only as ‘Dianne’ and ‘Myla’ attempted to depart on board a Cathay Pacific flight to Beijing when they were stopped by officers.
Officers doubted their identity when they noticed that the two women were unable to speak in any Filipino language.
Passenger ‘Dianne’, 61 years-old, presented a valid Philippine passport and a birth certificate. Immigration officers noted that her birth was registered only in 2002 when she was already 39 years old.
The woman gave highly inconsistent statements about her identity, and declared that she could not remember the name of the school she attended in the Philippines.
Passenger ‘Myla’ attempted to pass through a separate immigration counter, but was also referred for further assessment after inconsistencies were found by the officers. She presented a Philippine passport, a Philippine driver’s license, and a UMID ID.
She claimed that she was homeschooled by her grandmother, and cannot remember details about her childhood and her family. She later admitted that she was only able to acquire said documents through a contact she met online.
Tansingco said that they suspect the two women are Chinese nationals.
“This seems like another case of fraud, wherein foreign nationals are able to secure Philippine documents through illegal means,” said Tansingco. The two women were arrested and will remain in the BI’s facility in Bicutan, Taguig while they face immigration deportation charges.
