A total of 48 of the at least 62 victims of alleged illegal recruitment by Italy-based Alpha Assistenza SRL yesterday filed their complaints before the Department of Justice.
The remaining 14, who were unable to file their complaints for various reasons, are expected to troop to the DoJ soon.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has pledged to ensure that justice is served in the alleged scam that promised Filipinos in the Philippines non-existent jobs in Italy.
The complainants had told DAILY TRIBUNE, which broke the story on its digital show Usapang OFW, that each of them paid at least 2,500 euro, or roughly P153,000, for papers that would have allowed them to work in Italy but that turned out to be fraudulent.
At the National Bureau of Investigation where the complainants sorted out their documents prior to filing them at the DoJ, Apple Cabasis talked of her shattered dream after being recruited by Alpha Assistenza which is headed by the couple Krizelle Respicio and Frederick Dutaro.
Respicio, Dutaro and a staffer of Alpha Assistenza, Kristine Tutanes, were accused of illegal recruitment and large-scale estafa before the DoJ.
"We first appeared before the DoJ on 29 September, and we just finalized our papers with the assistance of the NBI before going to the DoJ for the formal complaint," Cabasis said.
Cabasis emphasized that their pursuit of justice is not just about recovering their lost money but also about seeking accountability for their suffering and broken dreams.
"Some of us already had jobs in other countries, but when we saw the job openings in Italy, we flew back to the Philippines hoping for a better opportunity. But it turned out to be a scam," Cabasis said.
One victim had a job in Hawaii but decided to return to the Philippines after being offered a lucrative position in Italy. However, the job offer was fraudulent, leaving her without employment for six months.
"We sacrificed a lot of money, but what hurts more is the livelihood we lost because of this promise of high pay," Cabasis said.
