Japanese, Pinay nabbed for illegal recruitment

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) reported Tuesday the arrest of a Japanese man and a Filipina at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 last 9 May for alleged human trafficking and large-scale illegal recruitment.

In a statement, the DMW identified the suspects as Tomita Takayuki and Maria Zenaida Callos Otani. They were apprehended by DMW operatives and the NAIA Task Force Against Trafficking while allegedly attempting to smuggle 13 Filipinos out of the country for purported factory jobs in Japan.

Authorities said the suspects were recruiting victims under a fraudulent agency called Winkbayside Manpower Services, offering positions as factory workers under Japan’s Technical Intern Training Program with a promised salary of JPY200,000 or approximately P75,276.

However, the DMW said the victims were intended to be handed over to various employers to work in factories using different identities and would only receive JPY120,000 or about P41,165 of the promised amount.

The DMW urged other individuals who may have been victimized by the suspects to contact their office for assistance in filing appropriate charges.