Airport officer loses cash to Korean passenger

A senior officer of the Bureau of Immigration at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (BI-NAIA) lost her half-month’s salary to a South Korean passenger last Wednesday morning.

Immigration officer Marlene Pedrealba, assigned at the BI passport monitoring station at the Terminal I departure area, lost cash amounting to P15,000 when her handbag containing the money was taken by a female passenger departing for Seoul.

Ferdinand Sampol, BI-NAIA head of supervisors, said the theft of the bag occurred several minutes before lunch while the immigration officer was busy processing the travel papers of a large volume of passengers for several departing flights.

Unknown to Pedrealba, a South Korean passenger had nonchalantly sidled up behind her station and casually took her handbag during her preoccupation with her duties.

Pedrealba only discovered the disappearance of her bag, which she placed on top of the monitoring table, when she stood up to take her break.

She immediately reported the incident to the airport police and requested to see the recording of the camera that was monitoring their station.

Upon review of the recordings, Pedrealba learned that the handbag was taken by a female Korean who had gone directly to a ladies’ room.

Seeing this, Pedrealba rushed to the comfort room and found her bag in one corner.

Pedrealba found everything intact except for the P15,000 cash.

Through further viewing of the other video recordings, airport authorities revealed that the erring passenger who perpetrated the theft was with a big group of Korean passengers who boarded Korean Air Flight KE 622 bound for Seoul.