AN attempt by a human trafficking syndicate to smuggle a family of four Arab nationals to the United Kingdom was foiled by immigration officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) who also found their passports to be fake.
Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco said the four passengers, a mother and her three children, were intercepted at the NAIA Terminal 3 last November 23 after attempting to board a Cathay Pacific flight to Hongkong enroute to their final destination in the UK.
The aliens, he said, presented Seychelles passports to the airlines and the immigration officer who doubted the authenticity of the travel documents.
Examination conducted by the BI’s forensic documents laboratory confirmed that the passports presented were counterfeit.
“They are now undergoing investigation by our legal division after which they will be sent back for using spurious immigration documents,” Tansingco said.
The BI chief said it is apparent that the foiled human trafficking attempt was the handiwork of an international syndicate that attempts to use Manila as a transit or jump-off point for its victims.
It was learned from BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval said that the passengers arrived in Manila last November 6 and stayed here for more than two weeks before booking their outbound flight.
Sandoval added that the BI personnel who foiled the attempt at human trafficking also found from the passengers UK national identity cards which were found to be fake too.
She said the BI is still trying to ascertain their true nationality as there is difficulty getting information from them.
