DOTr suspends NAIA security staff alleged to have stolen from Thai tourist
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Transportation – Office for Transportation Security said Monday that it has relieved and suspended personnel involved in a viral video which supposedly showed them stealing from a Thai tourist who was passing through security screening.
The OTS said its investigators are now preparing to file criminal complaints against the security personnel and will seek the cooperation of the foreign national.
"These illegal acts will not be tolerated and we will apply the full force of the law to penalize the perpetrators," it said in a statement.
It added the OTS personnel "shall not only be dismissed from the service but shall also be put behind bars for their criminal acts that tarnish the reputation and integrity not only of OTS but the entire country in general."
Thai national Piyawat Gunlayaprasit posted last Wednesday a video that has since made rounds on social media which appeared to show security personnel taking cash from the wallet of another Thai tourist, Kitja Thabthim, before it went through an x-ray machine at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
"I saw the Philippine officer doing it secretly and took a photo. It turns out that she put the money that she had stolen from a Thai brother to put it in the pocket of a short-haired officer," Gunlayaprasit said in a Facebook post.
He said when they complained about the missing money, the officer told them to contact the central office as there were no CCTV cameras in that area.
In another clip also posted on social media, a female security officer is seen apparently returning a total of 20,000 yen or around P8,000.
Senate public services chairperson Grace Poe told reporters that she is "enraged and ashamed" over the incident, which she said could adversely affect the country’s tourism campaign.
Poe also shared that one of her staffers also had the same experience at NAIA where they lost an Apple Watch after passing security.
"They should not just be suspended because their jobs are very sensitive. And it would not set a good precedent if they are only suspended and they get to return to work," she said in a media briefing in Filipino.
But she quipped that security personnel at NAIA might be stealing from passengers because they are not paid enough.
"There is no excuse in committing illegal acts even if you’re needy," Poe said. "But the reality is if you are sorely lacking because you are not paid right, it is much more enticing to do this nonsense."
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