Bureau of Immigration (BI) operatives arrested a South Korean national wanted by authorities in Seoul for involvement in telecom fraud.
BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said 47-year-old Kim Tae Ho was arrested on Wednesday in his home in Novaliches, Quezon City by members of the Bureau’s Fugitive Search Unit (FSU).
BI agents arrested Kim on the strength of a mission order which Morente issued at the request of South Korean authorities in Manila.
“The South Korean government informed us about his presence in the country, and requested that he be deported due to the fraud charges that were filed against him in his country,” the BI chief said.
He added that Kim will be expelled for being an undesirable and undocumented alien as his passport was already revoked by the Korean government.
“We will also place him in our blacklist to prevent him from re-entering the Philippines,” Morente said.
According to BI FSU Chief Rendel Sy, Kim is the subject of a standing warrant of arrest issued by the Gwangju District Court in Korea.
BI nabs South Korean fugitive wanted for telco fraud
He is allegedly a member of a syndicate that defrauded its victims through voice phishing, which is done wherein the suspects would impersonate a bank teller and enticed victims to deposit their money, allegedly in exchange for loans that they would get at very low interest.
Authorities placed the amount of combined losses incurred by the victims from the syndicate’s racket between September 2012 to July 2013 at 3.8 billion won or roughly US$3.2 million.
Kim is presently detained at the BI Detention Center in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig City pending his deportation.
Meanwhile, BI said its personnel in the country’s ports remain on alert to thwart any attempt by international terrorists to enter the country.
“Our personnel in all international airports and seaports nationwide are always on alert to prevent these foreign terrorists from slipping into the country,” Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said in a statement.
Morente bared that immigration officers are extra cautious in allowing the entry of foreign nationals with doubtful purpose. He said aliens deemed as likely to become public charge or pose threat to public safety are subjected to secondary inspection.
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