Operatives from the Bureau of Immigration (BI) at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) foiled the departure of a woman who fell victim to a fake departure stamp scheme.

BI commissioner Norman Tansingco said that the woman — whose name was withheld due to anti-trafficking laws — was supposed to board a Cathay Pacific flight to the Netherlands but was stopped during primary inspection.

“The female victim attempted to evade primary inspection and pretended that she had already completed the immigration departure procedures. She claimed to be a tourist visiting her alleged boyfriend in the Netherlands,” Tansingco said.

But suspicious documents led to a secondary inspection, where the woman revealed she met her alleged contact at fast food restaurant at the NAIA Terminal 3.

The contact took her boarding pass and passport and returned them with fake departure stamps, Tansingco said.

Investigations showed that the traffickers demanded P160,000 from the woman before releasing her travel documents. A forensic analysis by the BI confirmed the fake stamps.