2 trafficking victims who posed as House employees rescued in Cebu - BI

Two women who posed as employees of the House of Representatives were intercepted in Cebu after reportedly falling victim to illegal recruitment.

Immigration authorities said the female passengers were intercepted at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) on January 7 after attempting to board a flight bound for Vietnam.

The victims, aged 25 and 26, initially presented themselves as tourists visiting Vietnam. They also said they were working as encoders for the House of Representatives.

However, a secondary inspection of the passengers revealed their certificates of employment were fake. They later admitted to being recruited for a job offer abroad online.

According to the victims, they paid more than P100,000 each for processing fees. Their recruiter instructed them to travel to Vietnam first and wait there for their visas and travel arrangements to Bulgaria, where they were supposed to work illegally as restaurant crew.

“These are clear indicators of human trafficking—fake employment documents, false declarations, and instructions to wait for papers in another country,” BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said.

“No Filipino should fall victim to illegal recruiters and traffickers who prey on desperation and false promises,” Viado said.

Viado reminded the public to remain vigilant against job offers abroad that would require them to pose as tourists or misrepresent their purpose of travel.

“If you are being told to lie, hide your true destination, or pay large sums of money outside legal recruitment channels, that is not legitimate work—it is trafficking,” he added.  —VBL, GMA Integrated News