BI tightens watch vs. aliens using bogus, stolen foreign passports

By Ferdinand Patinio, Philippine News Agency

Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco issued the warning Thursday amid recent cases of Vietnamese minors caught using such documents. (PNA file photo by Cristina Arayata)

MANILA – Bureau of Immigration (BI) officers have been alerted to tighten their watch against foreigners attempting to enter the country using fraudulently acquired foreign passports.

Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco issued the warning Thursday amid recent cases of Vietnamese minors caught using such documents.

He reported that officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 have recently encountered three incidents of children presenting illegally obtained German passports in separate incidents.

Two Vietnamese women arrived at the NAIA Terminal 1 last July 22 aboard a Philippine Airlines flight from Saigon and were denied entry for presenting German passports which turned out to be stolen.

They were only identified as ‘Diem’, 15 and ‘Quynh’, 17, who presented German passports whose owners the two shared similar facial features with.

“They were look-alikes, but were detected as both German passports prompted a hit in the BI’s Interpol derogatory check system indicating that their travel documents were reported as lost or stolen,” Tansingco said.

The women later admitted during questioning that the German passports were not theirs and that these were only given to them by fixers who assured them they could easily travel if they used them instead of their Vietnamese passports.

They also brought out their Vietnamese passports which contained their real names and the German passports were confiscated for turnover to the German Embassy.

Both were denied entry to the country, boarded on the next available flight back to their port of origin, and blacklisted.

Meanwhile, another Vietnamese minor was intercepted at the same terminal last July 23 before he could board a Korean Airlines flight to Incheon, South Korea en route to his final destination in Toronto, Canada.

The traveler identified only as “Thang’”, 17, also presented a fraudulently-acquired German passport when he presented himself for departure clearance.

When interviewed, he confessed his true identity and showed his Vietnamese passport which was wrapped in a foil and hidden inside his bag. He admitted that he intended to use the German passport to gain illegal entry to Canada.

The foreigner was taken into custody and temporarily housed under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) while undergoing removal proceedings.

Investigations revealed that he was able to illegally acquire his passport from a website allegedly based in Europe that sells fraudulent travel documents.

“It was surprising to hear how easy it was for him to acquire the passport online. This seems to be another scheme illegal migrants use to be able to secure work abroad,” the BI chief added.

He noted that the apprehensions might be linked to the trafficking of minors to illegally enter other countries.