A 57-year-old Chinese national wanted in her home country was intercepted after she attempted to transit through the Philippines from Singapore to the United States, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported Wednesday evening.

The passenger, identified as Hao Bin, was flagged at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 on 1 December. Deputy spokesperson Melvin Mabulac said Hao’s case is a “high-profile case,” noting that she is the subject of a 2024 Interpol red notice in connection with a misappropriation of funds case in China.

“I was in the office when our APIS (Advanced Passenger Information System) was triggered… we coordinated with Interpol and saw that this was a high-profile case. The Chinese authorities were immediately alerted, so even before she could move further, we were able to intercept her here at NAIA Terminal 1,” Mabulac said.

The case filed against Hao by the Qingdao Economic and Technological Development Zone Branch of the Public Security Bureau in 2023 alleges that Hao and an accomplice used their positions from 2019 to 2022 to embezzle more than CNY 977.85 million, or around P8.1 billion.

BI Interpol coordinated with Chinese authorities, who arranged Hao’s return to China to face charges.