Press Release
MANILA – Three suspected human traffickers were charged following an inquest filed by the National Bureau of Investigation–International Airport Investigation Division, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported Saturday.
The case, which stemmed from the sworn complaints of seven overseas Filipino victims, was filed before the Office of the City Prosecutor of Pasay on April 24, BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said in a news release Saturday.
The BI, which assisted in the investigation, said the victims were promised jobs but were instead forced to work in cyberscam operations under severe physical abuse and coercion.
The victims said they were recruited online, then instructed to pose as overseas Filipino workers or as tourists to evade detection.
Upon arriving in Myanmar, they were detained in scam compounds where they were beaten, electrocuted and denied proper compensation if they failed to meet daily scam quotas. Some had no rest days and suffered psychological trauma.
Despite the abuses, many were initially hesitant to testify, fearing the traffickers’ resources and legal connections.
The victims were repatriated on April 23 in coordination with the Department of Foreign Affairs, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, Department of Migrant Workers, Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Philippine Embassy in Cambodia.
Viado noted that the government’s efforts are anchored on the directive of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to protect Filipinos from all forms of modern-day slavery and transnational crimes.
“We stand with the President in the goal of protecting every Filipino from human trafficking,” he said.
The BI also thanked the Department of Justice–Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for its support and persistence in building and filing the case. (PR)
