BI deports 9 Japanese fugitives

The Bureau of Immigration deported nine Japanese fugitives arrested by the bureau’s operatives in November last year. The Japanese were reportedly wanted for committing telecommunications fraud in their own country.

BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said the nine Japanese boarded Japan Airlines flight at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 bound for Tokyo and escorted by Japanese police.

The deportees were identified as Irie Dai, Ishii Kyogo, Hamaoka Kantaro, Maeyama Takuto, Tanaka Kazuya, Yoshida Takeshi, Murata Seiichi, Kouki Shouji, and Imizumi Ryo.

Morente said they are the first batch of deportees from among the 36 Japanese nationals who were arrested in Makati City last Nov. 13 by agents from the BI fugitive search unit.

“The schedule for the implementation of the deportation of the others remaining at the BI Detention Center in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig have yet to be finalized,” Morente said.

Earlier, a summary deportation order was issued by the three-man BI board of commissioners against said aliens, thus paving the way for their eventual return to Japan.

The board also directed that they be included in the bureau’s blacklist of undesirable aliens to prevent them from reentering the Philippines.

Morente said Japanese fugitives must be deported from the Philippines as their continued presence here poses a risk to public interest.

The Japanese used to conduct voice phishing operations that defrauded many of their compatriots in Japan.

Japanese authorities alleged that the aliens are members of a organized crime group that are engaged in voice phishing and telecom fraud that victimized many of their compatriots in Japan.

Authorities further alleged that combined losses incurred by the suspects’ victims already amounted to more than 2 billion yen or more than US$18 million.