MANILA, Philippines — Eight Filipinos leaving for Cyprus guised as tourists were saved by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) from suspected human trafficking at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) on Saturday, the agency said Monday.
The BI said the Filipinos — six men and two women — were intercepted at the Naia Terminal 3 before they could board a United Emirates Airways flight bound for Dubai en route to their final destination in northern Cyprus.
BI Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Medina said that the passengers, whose names were not disclosed due to anti-trafficking laws, all admitted that their purpose in going overseas was to work without proper documentation.
“Six of them were allegedly hired as cleaners in a restaurant while one of them was recruited as a cook,” Medina said in a statement.
Medina said the BI was able to intercept them when one of the women was referred to the Travel Control and Enforcement Unit (TCEU)for secondary inspection by the immigration officer who doubted the purpose of her travel.