Taiwanese wanted for human trafficking arrested in Makati

The Bureau of Immigration reports that the Taiwanese national who was wanted by Taipei authorities for his potential participation in human trafficking has been arrested.

In a report given to BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco, the BI Fugitive Search Unit identified the arrested Taiwanese fugitive as Yuan Bo-Chun, a 29-year-old male who was apprehended last Monday inside his residence along Kalayaan Avenue, corner of Mercado Street, in Makati City. The arrest was made in cooperation with Taiwanese authorities and the Regional Special Operations Group-Regional Intelligence Division of the National Capital Region.

The arresting team was armed with a mission order issued by Commissioner Tansingco, following information provided by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Manila.

BI-FSU chief Rendel Ryan Sy said Yuan’s arrest was sought by Taiwanese authorities after learning that the fugitive had fled to the Philippines to evade criminal prosecution for his alleged crime.

Sy disclosed that a warrant for Yuan’s arrest was issued by the Taiwan Taipei district prosecutor’s office in November 2023. A check of his travel records by the BI showed that he last arrived in the Philippines on 15 September 2019 and has not left since then.

Tansingco cited Yuan’s arrest as “another proof that crime does not pay and that the long arm of the law eventually catches wanted criminals who hide and elude arrest to evade prosecution.”

The BI Chief added that there will be no letup in the BI’s campaign to go after wanted foreign fugitives who use the Philippines as their refuge or sanctuary.

The Taiwanese was later committed to the BI warden facility in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig, where he will remain until his deportation.

Meanwhile, while conducting the operation, the FSU agents also came across Lin Jyun-Ze, a 22-year-old male, who is also a Taiwanese national, inside Yuan's home.

Lin was apprehended in flagrante, or while committing telecommunications fraud, and was found in possession of multiple illegal narcotics and high-powered weaponry.

Together with ammunition and powerful weapons, the FSU and RSOG-RID NCR have discovered numerous SMS modem devices, hundreds of active SIM cards linked to various identities, and a sizable cache of premium marijuana.

The National Capital Region Police Office in Camp Bagong Diwa was then given the custody of Lin while the relevant criminal cases were being filed with the local courts.