By Junex Doronio
MANILA — Alert Bureau of Immigration (BI) personnel foiled over the weekend an attempt to sneak through the Clark International Airport in Angeles City and Mabalacat, Pampanga three women who posed as singers bound for South Korea and were promised P40,000 monthly salary each.
In a statement on Monday (11 March 2024), the BI said the three victims and another woman attempted to fly to Thailand posing as a group of friends at the Clark International Airport.
But on secondary inspection, the three victims admitted that they were bound for South Korea as singers with a P40,000 monthly salary each.
They claimed that they were accompanied by their recruiter, who insisted that they pose as tourists and hide their destination despite their requests for a legal employment process.
The BI revealed the recruiter planned to escort the victims to South Korea before returning to the Philippines alone.
“There are numerous cases documented wherein victims are promised work as entertainers, but end up in prostitution. Aspiring workers should also protect themselves by ensuring that they only apply work through legal means,” BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco lamented.
He said the victims have now been referred to the CIA Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) which is set to file charges against their recruiter whose identity was withheld for the meantime.
(el Amigo/MNM)
