The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has reported the arrest of three South Korean nationals wanted by their government for telecommunications fraud.
Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente identified the aliens as Lim Yeongjun, 36; Kwom Hyeoksoo, 49; and, Sim Dong Woo, 49.
The three were arrested Tuesday by the BI’s fugitive search unit (FSU) inside the office of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) at the Southern Police District (SPD) Headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, where they were taken earlier into custody by policemen.
Morente said the Koreans, who are all overstaying aliens, are subjects of red notices from the Interpol.
The BI chief, however, stressed that the subjects cannot be deported yet as they are facing criminal charges for violating the 1988 Access Device Regulation Act and 2011 Anti-Cybercrime Law.
The suspects are currently detained at the custodial facility of the CIDG while undergoing criminal investigation prior to the filing of complaints against them in court.
“It is only after these criminal charges are resolved, and upon completion of service of sentence, if they are convicted, that we will be able to deport them,” Morente added.
It was learned the fugitives operated clandestine call centers in Manila, which they used to trick and defraud their victims.
They deceived victims by pretending to be agents of lending institutions, and persuading the former to repay their loans in advance in order to avail of lower interest.
Korean authorities charged that the fugitives amassed from their phishing activities more than US$67,000, which the unsuspecting victims deposited into the suspects’ bank accounts. (Jun Ramirez)
