The Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported Friday that it intercepted six suspected victims of human trafficking bound for Cambodia over two days at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
The first interception occurred on Wednesday, 29 October at NAIA Terminal 3, involving two men, ages 25 and 37, who were about to board an AirAsia flight to Don Mueang, Thailand. The men presented fake employment papers and later admitted they were traveling to Cambodia to work for an online company.
One of the victims told authorities that he had initially backed out of the job offer but was blackmailed into continuing his trip after being threatened that his friend already in Cambodia would be harmed if he refused to go. He had been instructed to pose as a tourist going to Thailand.
On the same day, BI officers recorded a similar incident involving two male passengers caught with fake employment documents before boarding a Cebu Pacific flight to Hong Kong.
Both admitted their final destination was Cambodia, where they were promised a salary of $900 a month or approximately P53,000.
The following day, 30 October, two female passengers, ages 30 and 32, were intercepted before boarding the same flight to Hong Kong.
They confessed their destination was Cambodia, where they had been recruited for chat support jobs with a promised salary of P60,000.
All six passengers were turned over to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for investigation and the filing of charges against their recruiters.