“The Philippines is not a sanctuary for foreign fugitives,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla stressed on Tuesday.

Remulla made the statement after the Bureau of Immigration (BI) arrested a Japanese national wanted in his country for scamming a compatriot out of approximately 3 million yen.

By virtue of a standing court order from Omiya, Japan, the BI Fugitive Search Unit tracked down the Japanese fraudster, Yokota Tetsuya, in Binondo, Manila on 2 January.

Reports revealed that Tetsuya and his accomplices deceived a fellow Japanese by making a fraudulent call about the cost of entering a nursing home, convincing the victim to hand over 2.75 million yen.

“The Philippines is not a haven for international criminals. This is my final warning to undesirable aliens who may attempt to push their luck in our country — you have no place here,” Remulla said.

“We vow to intensify our border control efforts this year so expect stricter measures to be imposed at all entry and exit points throughout the country,” he added.