By Francis B. Bilowan
MANILA, Nov. 9 (PNA) -- Immigration officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) stumbled upon a new modus operandi of human traffickers with the recent arrest of three prospective overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who concealed their travel documents in their underwear in an attempt to hide their true destinations.
Bureau of Immigration Officer-In-Charge Ronaldo Ledesma said the three female “tourist workers†were intercepted at the NAIA last Oct. 25 as they were about to board a Philippine Airlines flight to Singapore.
It turned out that the women, who pretended to be tourists, were actually bound for Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates. The government bans the deployment of female workers to Lebanon.
“It appears that the illegal recruiters and human trafficking syndicates are using all tricks so their victims can avoid detection by immigration officers,†Ledesma said.
He said the new modus operandi is a sign of desperation on the part of the syndicates whose operations are reportedly severely crippled by the BI’s intensified drive against human trafficking.
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