The Bureau of Immigration (BI) apprehended five Chinese nationals and one Taiwanese national, all wanted by authorities for various crimes, during separate operations.
In a statement, BI Officer-in-Charge Joel Anthony Viado identified four Chinese nationals who were arrested by operatives from the BI’s Fugitive Search Unit (FSU).
The arrests occurred at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City on August 31, following their detention by the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO).
Citing information from the Chinese government, Viado revealed that one of the Chinese fugitives is facing charges related to income concealment, while two others are wanted for fraud. The remaining Chinese national is sought by authorities for involvement in illegal business activities.
It has been discovered that these fugitives were among the foreign nationals detained by police during a raid on an alleged cryptocurrency investment and love scam operation in Parañaque City on August 22.
The establishment that was raided was reportedly disguised as a licensed offshore gaming operator to mask its illicit activities.
The fifth foreign fugitive arrested at the BI's head office in Intramuros was a 53-year-old Taiwanese national.
He was classified as an undesirable alien after the BI received information from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in the Philippines, revealing that he have an arrest warrant for rape charges filed in a Taiwan court in 2005. He was also found to be overstaying for over 20 years.
On September 8, FSU officers arrested a Chinese national along Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard in Parañaque City.
The foreign national is sought by both the Chinese government and Interpol. In 2023, the Cyber Police Branch of the Daqing Municipal Public Security Bureau issued two arrest warrants against him for illegally controlling computer information systems, in violation of Article 285 of China’s Criminal Law.
He is reported to have led an online criminal organization that created a computer virus to collect personal information from victims for use in fraudulent activities.
Viado stated that all six aliens are currently held in the BI's facility in Taguig, awaiting their deportation.
