JOINT operatives of the Bureau of Immigration and the National Bureau of Investigation have arrested nine Korean nationals in Parañaque City suspected of being involved in an online loan scam.
Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the operation took place on Wednesday evening up to the early hours of Thursday at a condominium building.
He said the nine Koreans were “caught in the act” of operating suspected scam platforms.
“The authorities found the individuals manning separate computer stations with pre-written scripts suspected to be used for fraudulent online lending transactions,” Viado said.
The arrested individuals are temporarily detained at the NBI’s Organized and Transnational Crime Division and will be turned over to the BI Warden Facility in Bicutan, Taguig City.
“We are working in close coordination with local and international law enforcement agencies to ensure that the Philippines does not become a haven for cybercriminals. Foreign nationals found violating our laws, especially those involved in syndicated crime, will be located, apprehended, and deported without hesitation,” Viado said.
Koreans topped the list of foreign fugitives arrested in the country in 2023 and 2024, with 39 and 74 respectively.
Viado also said immigration officers at the Davao International Airport have intercepted six Filipinos who were recruited to work in scam hubs in Cambodia.
The six, according to Viado, attempted to depart from Davao via a Philippine Airlines flight to Singapore last June 20.
He said under questioning by immigration officers, the six admitted their supposed tourist trip to Singapore was actually a front, as they have been recruited by a fellow Filipino through the social messaging platform Telegram, to work in Cambodia as customer service representative, the same modus used by human traffickers to recruit and deploy Filipinos to work in scam hubs not only in Cambodia, but in other countries in the region.
“One of the victims recounted that they were all provided with fraudulent documents and a return ticket by the recruiter and were instructed to present these documents as part of their travel papers. The victim also said that she paid P50,000 to the said recruiter,” Viado said.
The six were turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for assistance.
Last April, 36 Filipinos were rescued by Cambodian authorities with the assistance of the Philippine Embassy in Phnom Penh after being made to work in scam hubs in the said country.
