Pinoy repatriated from Laos after falling victim to illegal recruitment

Another Filipino who fell victim to illegal recruitment in Laos has safely returned to the Philippines, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said.

According to the BI, the 27-year-old victim was repatriated on January 20, arriving aboard VietJet Air flight VJ858 from Vientiane, Laos, with a transit in Vietnam.

Immigration records showed that the victim left the country in June 2025 as a tourist bound for Thailand. He later admitted that he traveled onward to Laos to work as a customer service representative.

The victim said he was recruited online and promised a monthly salary of P40,000. Instead, he was forced to work for about six months as a “finder,” searching for potential scam victims online.

“Human traffickers now operate openly on social media, using fake job offers to lure Filipinos into dangerous and exploitative situations," BI Commissioner Joel Viado said.

This is a serious crime, and we are determined to work with law enforcement to shut down these networks,” he added.

Viado said the government remains firm in protecting victims and pursuing those behind trafficking schemes, while warning the public against accepting overseas job offers that bypass lawful deployment processes.

In October 2025, the Philippines also repatriated four Filipinos who fell victim to a human trafficking scheme in Laos.—MCG, GMA Integrated News