Three Filipinos were intercepted at Clark International Airport after authorities discovered that they were pretending to be tourists in an attempt to leave for an illegal job abroad, the Bureau of Immigration said on Thursday.

BI reported that two women aged 30 to 33 and a 33-year-old man were stopped on 15 September before boarding a Scoot Airlines flight to Malaysia. The trio claimed to be on a four-day vacation, but further document checks and questioning revealed inconsistencies in their statements.

One victim admitted she did not know her actual travel itinerary and disclosed that she learned of a job offer in Cambodia. The group later admitted they were traveling together to secure employment as customer service representatives, offered by one of the victim’s ex-lover.

Authorities said the recruiter promised a salary of P40,000 to P50,000 and instructed the victims to pose as tourists and await instructions upon arrival in Malaysia. Officials also found that conversations with the recruiter had been deleted before her flight.

The three were turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) at Clark International Airport for investigation.