The Bureau of Immigration reported that more than 400 foreign nationals were barred from entering the country from March to mid-April this year, due to various cases.
The BI said the foreign nationals were found to be undesirable and have criminal records. Some are also sex offenders, the agency further said.
The BI’s immigration protection and border enforcement section (I-PROBES) said that from March to April 15, it has excluded 401 foreign nationals for various immigration violations.
Topping the list of excluded foreigners were Vietnamese at 254; Chinese, 76; and Indonesians, 19. Also on the list are 17 Burmese, 8 Moroccans, and 4 Ghanaians.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said that the rise in exclusions is a result of intelligence information that many of the said aliens are working for illegal online gaming hubs in the country.
“We look at patterns of previous arrests, as well as travel histories of other intercepted aliens, We use this pattern to intercept other potential violators, as well as those holding spurious documents,” he added.
The majority of said aliens were excluded for likely to become a public charge after being found to be improperly documented or have a doubtful purpose of staying in the country.
Tansingco, however, clarified that they are not targeting specific nationalities, but rely on trends and data analysis.
“These illegal hubs are usually operated by syndicates that recruit foreign nationals, enticing them to work without proper documentation. We’ve seen that in many of our arrests both on the ground and at the airports,” he added.
Excluded aliens board the next available flight back to their port of origin. Those denied entry for being likely to become a public charge are included in the BI’s blacklist, barring future attempts at entry..