A departing Malaysian passenger who reportedly entered the country illegally was arrested by Bureau of Immigration (BI) inspectors at the international seaport in Zamboanga City.
BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said Hii Kien Tong, 32m was intercepted at the Zamboanga International Seaport (ZIS) last Oct. 16 while attempting to board the vessel M/V Antonio 1 bound for Sandakan, Malaysia. Hii was not allowed to leave after immigration officers saw that his name is in the BI’s database of blacklisted aliens.
The said Malaysian was subsequently brought to the BI detention facility in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig City where he will remain while undergoing deportation proceedings.
Investigation later revealed that he was previously excluded and barred from entering the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on Dec. 9, 2023 due to his being a blacklisted alien.
He was included in the said blacklist on Dec. 27, 2022 for illegally working in an online gaming hub with a canceled license to operate.
According to Viado, the passenger was discovered to be an illegal entrant after BI officers found no immigration arrival stamp on his passport.
“We suspect that despite his being barred from entering the country last year, he managed to re-enter the country illegally,” the BI chief said.
He commended the BI personnel assigned at the Zamboanga port for their vigilance in thwarting an attempt by an illegal alien to flee the country.
