The increasing number of registered sex offenders (RSOs) entering the Philippines is causing concern, according to the Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Thursday, November 30.
In a statement, Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said that during the pandemic, there was an increase in online exploitation of women and children.
When international travel resumed, the number of RSOs rose, which could show that the exploitation is being continued.
In a press release on Thursday, BI said that it once again barred another American who was convicted of sexually molesting a child in the United States (US) 13 years ago.
The suspect was identified as Francisco Narvios Tecson, 55, who was arrested upon his arrival at NAIA Terminal 1 aboard an Eva Air flight from Taiwan.
BI's investigation revealed that in 2010, Tecson was convicted of having indecent contact with an eight-year-old female.
“Thus, he is an excludable foreign passenger for being convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude as provided in our Philippine immigration act,” Tansingco said.
Same evening on Wednesday, when a 65-year-old American RSO was also barred from arriving from Taiwan. He was identified as Dale Lloyd Bayless.
Public records show that in 1990, Bayless was found guilty of sodomy for an incident that occurred in 1989 in Neosho, Missouri, involving a nine-year-old girl victim.
Tecson and Bayless are just two of the more than 150 international RSOs who have been denied admission at the airports since January this year.
A small number of RSOs were intercepted at the airports in Mactan, Cebu, and Clark, Pampanga, but the majority were caught at the NAIA.
“During the pandemic, there was an increase in online exploitation of women and children. When international travel resumed, the number of RSOs rose, which could show that the exploitation is being continued,” the BUI Chief said.
