BI to deport Saudi fugitive wanted for fraud

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) intercepted and will deport an alleged Saudi fugitive wanted by authorities in his country for fraud and embezzlement.

Immigration officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport barred one Bandar Hamdi Alshalwi, 44, from leaving the country for Jeddah last May 16. He was offloaded from his flight and detained at the bureau's detention facility in Taguig City.

The BI said Alshalwi faced an arrest warrant after he absconded with more than seven million Saudi rials, or nearly $2 million (P101 million), that he allegedly defrauded from his victims.

The amount was purportedly payment for his recruitment of Filipina domestic helpers his victims wished to employ, BI Intelligence Chief Fortunato Manahan Jr. said in a statement.

The Saudi national was the subject of a red notice by the INTERPOL on February 12, 2015, after authorities learned that he had fled to the Philippines, the bureau said.

Alshalwi arrived in the country in 2014 and had been overstaying for six years. The bureau blacklisted him and ordered his summary deportation in July 2015 at the request of Saudi authorities.

The alleged fugitive was expected to be immediately deported once the Saudi embassy arranged his for departure. The BI said he could be sentenced to two years in prison if convicted. — DVM, GMA News