PASAY CITY: Bureau of Immigration (BI) officers at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 intercepted a scam victim who had been deceived into paying PHP120,000 for non-existent assistance to illegally work abroad. The victim, identified only as alias ‘Amy,’ 27, was stopped on Jan. 2 while attempting to leave the country under the guise of a tourist headed to Bangkok, Thailand.

According to Philippines News Agency, Amy was apprehended after trying to bypass the immigration inspection process at the departure counters. Upon further inspection, she failed to present her passport and boarding pass, claiming that these documents were held by an unidentified man she met at a restaurant near the terminal. Instead, she showed a photo of her passport and boarding pass, which authorities found to have a counterfeit immigration stamp.

Amy confessed that she had been attracted by a Facebook advertisement offering immigration escort services and subsequently paid PHP120,000 through multiple online bank transfers. She had handed over her travel documents to the man and was instructed to wait for an alleged escort. Just before her supposed boarding time, she was told to rush to the boarding gates, at which point she was intercepted by BI officers. It was then discovered that the man she had been in contact with had blocked her messages.

Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado expressed concerns that Amy might have been interacting with a mail-order bride syndicate. “Her admission that she was meeting a man she didn’t know in Bangkok raises serious red flags,” Viado stated in a news release. He emphasized that this case underscores the dangers of illegal schemes targeting vulnerable individuals seeking better opportunities and urged the public to adhere to proper immigration procedures to avoid exploitation.

The victim has been referred to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for further assistance.