BI blocks Chinese national involved in airplane ‘salisi’ incidents

A Chinese national suspected of being a member of a gang involved in theft incidents onboard commercial airplanes was intercepted upon his arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said.

In a statement on Tuesday, BI commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the 52-year-old foreigner attempted to enter the country on January 20 at the NAIA Terminal 1 via Kuala Lumpur.

However, the BI Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) Operations Center (APOC) received an alert about the suspect’s arrival.

Viado said the operation was made possible through the use of UN goTravel software of the United Nations (UN) Office of Counter-Terrorism, with assistance from the Australian government.

“This system allowed us to get advance information about suspected criminals, giving us the opportunity to make the necessary arrangements for their interception,” he said.

The foreigner is suspected of being a member of a criminal group involved in theft incidents onboard commercial aircraft.

The incidents usually involved stealing cash from the hand-carried luggage of other passengers.

Members of the criminal group would retrieve other passengers’ luggage from the overhead luggage bins and return to their seats to check the luggage for cash and other valuables.

The Chinese national was immediately intercepted by the BI upon his arrival at the NAIA Terminal 1 and denied entry into the Philippines.

The foreigner was immediately sent back to his country of origin and placed on the BI’s blacklist to prevent him from reentering the country. — JMA, GMA Integrated News