MANILA – A man and a woman from Africa who attempted to enter the country by posing as Canadian citizens were intercepted recently by immigration authorities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
In a statement Wednesday, BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said the passengers arrived at the NAIA Terminal 3 on Sept. 25 from Dubai aboard an Emirates flight.
In a report to Tansingco, BI port operations chief Carlos Capulong identified the couple as Adraman Issa Mariam and Halime Abba Souleymane, both from Chad in central Africa.
He said the couple presented counterfeit Canadian passports to the immigration officers who immediately suspected the authenticity of the travel documents due to many inconsistencies.
“Apparently, they attempted to conceal their true nationality in the belief that they would be allowed entry into the country without being subjected to strict inspection by our officers. They are wrong to assume that such documents can pass as legitimate,” Capulong said.
Tansingco ordered the inclusion of the suspects on the immigration blacklist to prevent them from entering the Philippines.
“I commend our officers at the NAIA for a job well done. Due to their vigilance, we were able to frustrate the intentions of these undesirable aliens to gain illegal entry into our country,” the BI chief added.
The passports were forwarded to the BI’s forensic documents laboratory, which confirmed that the documents were indeed counterfeit.
The couple was outrightly excluded and booked on the first available flight to their port of origin. (PNA)
