A British child abuser, along with two fraudsters from the UK and Germany, are to be deported from the Philippines following a series of raids.
In a statement issued today (Monday, August 20) the Bureau of Immigration (BI) confirmed the arrest of the three foreign fugitives following separate raids in Metro Manila and Nueva Vizcaya.
Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said the three men were tracked down by agents of the Bureau’s Fugitive Search Unit led by BI intelligence officer Bobby Raquepo.
He said: “We have received information that all three are wanted for serious crimes in their homelands, thus they will be deported immediately so they could be tried and jailed for their misdeeds.”
He added that the men were already considered to be undocumented aliens because their passports had been cancelled by their home governments.
First to be arrested in the town of Bambang, Nueva Vizcaya, on August 7, was 53-year-old British man Stephen James Forrest, a convicted sex offender wanted in the UK for violating the conditions of his probation.
Forrest was convicted in 2016 for sharing photographs of an underage girl being tied up.
Then, on August 15, BI agents raided a condominium building in Mandaluyong City and arrested German Thomas Michael Heinig, aged 48, who is wanted for a string of fraud cases in his country.
Heinig has 21 pending cases of fraud, and two cases of attempted fraud against him. He allegedly scammed travel agencies by booking tours that he would later cancel after receiving refunds for fees that he hadn’t paid.
Finally, on Friday, British fraudster Simon Boulstridge Bailey, 54, was arrested at his residence on Ayala Avenue in Makati City. Bailey is subject of an Interpol red notice in connection with a case for forgery that was filed against him in the UK.
He allegedly conspired with another suspect to forge documents in order to misappropriate the investments of a dead business partner.
“Sex offenders and fraudsters are not welcome in the country,” said Mr Morente. “These criminals have committed heinous crimes against their countrymen, and allowing them to stay in the Philippines puts Filipinos at great risk.”
The trio are now being prepared for deportation and and will be blacklisted from returning the Philippines.
Earlier this year, it was announced that 2017 had seen a record number of foreign criminals deported from the Philippines. This year, so far, all signs point toward a new record being set.
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