FOR attempting to traffic three Filipinos to work illegally in scam hubs in Cambodia, an alleged pastor was intercepted at the Clark International Airport (CIA) afternoon of November 1.
It was learned from BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval that the man, who introduced himself as alias ‘Pastor Falcon’, attempted to depart on board a Cebu Pacific flight for Bangkok, Thailand with three individuals he claimed were his church mates in their religious organization.
When interviewed separately by members of the BI’s immigration protection and border enforcement section (I-PROBES) however, the companions gave conflicting statements about their purpose of travel and affiliation with each other.
They later admitted that they were actually headed for Cambodia, where they have been recruited to work as call center agents and cook for a company there, adding that high salaries of up to P50,000 per month were also offered to them, but they had no idea on the exact nature of the work they will be doing.
The victims admitted that they sought the assistance of the said ‘Pastor’, after he claimed that he was able to escort many workers out of the country already. A quick check of his records confirmed that he previously traveled with at least one individual who left as a tourist but has not returned to date.
The suspect and his three victims have been turned over to the CIA inter-agency council against trafficking (IACAT), who will initiate the investigation and filing of cases against the recruiters.
