The PNP-AVSEGROUP reported that on 22 April 2024, at Davao International Airport (DIA), a collaborative effort led to the successful rescue of four female minors suspected of being trafficking victims, along with the apprehension of their two female companions.
The joint operation involved WCPC Mindanao Field Unit, ASVEU 11, RWCPD 11, Sasa Police Station, DSWD FO XI, Regional Anti-Trafficking Task Force FO XI, Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission, and Philippine Center on Transnational Crime.
The investigation, according to the arresting officers, revealed that the minors were offered jobs as online sellers in the morning and as female waiters in the evening in Laoag, Ilocos Norte. This had led to the arrest of their female companions.
Both female suspects were informed that they were being arrested for violating Republic Act No. 10364, which is also known as the "Expanded Anti-Human Trafficking in Persons Act of 2012," and that their constitutional rights had been recorded via an alternative recording device (ARD) in compliance with the Supreme Court's Rules on the Use of Body-Worn Cameras in the Execution of Warrants.
Currently, the victims were sent to the City Social Welfare and Development Office Quick Response Team (CSWDO-QRTCC) for temporary custody and intervention, while the female suspects were transferred to the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) for medical assessment.
PNP-AVSEGROUP Director, PBGen Christopher N. Abrahano, lauded the preparedness and immediate response of the authorities at Davao International Airport.
P/BGen. Abrahano also sent a strong warning that this group will always be prepared to prevent and arrest any perpetrators of human trafficking across all airports in the country.
