The Bureau of Immigration (BI) apprehended a female passenger attempting to evade immigration inspection using a forged passport stamp—an operation that also led to the arrest of her alleged airport accomplice.
BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval said the incident occurred at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 on June 4, when BI officers intercepted alias ‘Maria’, 36, who claimed she had already undergone inspection and had only exited the area to eat.
Officers grew suspicious and referred her for secondary inspection, where a dubious departure stamp was found on her passport.
The BI’s forensic document laboratory later confirmed that the stamp was counterfeit. During questioning, ‘Maria’ admitted she had handed her passport to a fixer inside an airport restaurant. It was returned to her bearing the forged stamp.
Further investigation revealed that she had coordinated with an alleged escort who claimed to be an employee of BI and promised to facilitate her departure in exchange for $2,000 payment made through cryptocurrency.
Sandovalsaid it was later confirmed that alias ‘Ane’ is not an employee of the BI. She was found to be employed as a technical support staff of a private company contracted to maintain card readers at the airport’s immigration counters.
Both individuals have been turned over to the inter-agency council against trafficking for further investigation and filing of cases against them.
