VP NOLI SEEKS PROBE ON 5 VICTIMS OF ILLEGAL RECRUITMENT
May 9, 2008

VICE President Noli ‘Kabayan’ De Castro has tasked last Wednesday (May 7) the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) to investigate the five workers who were apprehended recently by authorities at the Bureau of Immigration (BI).

The Europe-bound workers were intercepted by the Migration Compliance and Monitoring Group (MCMG) operatives of the bureau after discovering that some of the travel documents they were holding were spurious, De Castro, who is also the presidential adviser on OFWs, said.

In a report submitted by BI Law and Investigation Division Chief Bienvenido K. Chy to De Castro, the workers were identified as Roberto Duldulao Abalos, Remelyn Rabanal Almazan, Ferdinand Belisario Almazan, Divina Baccay Laurel and Victor Oliveros Laurel.

De Castro said the workers attempted to depart for Slovakia on board Philippine Airlines flight PR 501 via Singapore when intercepted by MCMG operatives.

“They were profiled to work but they insisted they are on vacation as company incentives,” De Castro said, adding that the workers could not give accurate information regarding their employment and reason for travel.

De Castro also disclosed that the company identification and business cards possessed by the workers were verified and turned out to be non-existent.

In the course of the investigation, subjects admitted that they are going to work as domestic helpers in Frankfurt , Germany and they paid P150, 000.00 each to their recruiter whom they refuse to divulge.

With the help of the CIDG, De Castro is digging deeper as to the identity of the individual or group that prepared the documents of the workers who were found to have genuine passports and visas.

“I want to know how these workers obtained their visa. I also want the name of the person who collected the huge amount of money from these poor victims,” he said.

At present, the CIDG is looking into the involvement of Satellite Travel Agency which allegedly processed the documents of the workers. Also being considered in the investigation is the V-Gent Foundation represented by a certain Angelina Barrogga.

Barroga, a Bureau of Customs employee, reportedly assisted the workers in the process of getting their travel papers.

Meanwhile, De Castro lauded the immigration bureau for being on the look out for possible victims of illegal recruitment.

He said it was better that the MCMG operatives intercepted the workers from going out of the country than facing graver problems when they reached their supposed destination abroad.

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