The Bureau of Immigration confirmed that there is a syndicate behind the proliferation of passports with Filipino names being sold to foreigners.

This was confirmed by Dana Sandoval, BI spokesperson, in an interview at the National Press Club's Meet the Press, saying they already raised the alarm about the scheme.

Sandoval said they are inquiring about the matter thoroughly as the said passports were obtained by using original Filipino documents like postal IDs, birth certificates, marriage certificates and even national IDs.

"We already raised the alarm because our personnel were surprised to know that the holder of the passport is a foreigner but the name is of a Filipino. Our personnel noted this when the BI personnel arrested in Mindanao an alien with the said passport and it is a concern for national security because these people might have even voted by pretending to be a Filipino," Sandoval said.

During interrogation of those arrested the BI discovered the existence of a third person who took care of the passport and the supporting documents.

Sandoval said they are in the process of looking into the web of connections of those involved because it is not only Chinese nationals who are doing it but other nationalities.

She lamented the fact that it is very difficult to apprehend the holder of this kind of passport and they were only discovered due to the keen eye of the BI personnel assigned at the airport.

"Its difficult to intercept because of their contact that presented original supporting documents but since their names in the passport are Filipino, suspicion arouse that it was illegally acquired," she said.

 Sandoval said they already tapped the help of the National Bureau of Investigation to look into the matter.