‘Singers’ paid P500T each to get to Italy
A group of supposed "singers" bound for Hong Kong was held at the airport yesterday after admitting they each paid half a million pesos to a human smuggling syndicate.
The 31 Filipinos, who represented themselves as "Philippine Folk Singers" were composed mostly of women.
They were scheduled to board the Hong Kong Express flight UO 714 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1.
Airport monitoring agents found out that one of the 31 passengers is the travel guide and courier to Hong Kong.
Ferdinand Sampol, chief of the Airport Operations Division, told reporters that during interrogation, three members revealed their Schengen visa would be given upon arrival in Hong Kong.
The Schengen visa is a "visitor visa". It is issued to citizens of countries who are required to obtain a visa before entering Europe.
Sampol said Bureau of Immigration intelligence agents and members of the Task Force Against Human Trafficking (TFAHT) of the Department of Justice were able to confirm that the group’s final destination was Italy.
The 31 Filipinos were turned over to the TFAHT for further questioning. Their names were withheld for security reasons. – Jay Chua
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