A FEMALE illegal recruitment victim was intercepted by immigration personnel last November 6 after pretending to be a ‘pasabuy’ seller.
The victim, 36, attempted to depart for Hong Kong via a Philippine Airlines flight, stating that she is traveling to shop for her ‘ukay-ukay’ and ‘pasabuy’ business. She claimed to be working in a local apparel company and presented a certificate of employment, purportedly issued by her workplace.
However, immigration officers reported noting numerous inconsistencies in her travel, hence she was flagged for secondary inspection.
During inspection, she admitted that her travel documents were just sent to her via Facebook Messenger, and that she presented fake work documents.
Her passport was found to have a Malta employment visa, despite her initial claim that she is departing for tourism purposes.
She later said that she was offered to work illegally as a caregiver in Malta through a job hunting website.
Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco warned travelers not to accept online offers to work abroad without going through the legal process.
He highlighted numerous repatriations of overseas workers who met difficulties abroad, with many of them not receiving the salaries promised to them.
The victim was immediately turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) for assistance in filing cases against her recruiter.
