2 illegal recruiters nabbed

MANILA, Philippines - Authorities arrested two suspected members of an illegal recruitment syndicate operating inside the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) offices in Manila.

The Task Force Against illegal Recruitment (TFAIR) chairman Vice President Noli De Castro said the two suspects identified as Roy Loquias Paman and Benedicto Agnes Gonzales were arrested during an entrapment operation inside a convenient store in Ermita last September 22.

De Castro said the two suspects were engaging in illegal recruitment right inside the POEA offices.

Paman and Gonzales are allegedly connected to a highly organized crime group inside the POEA, which facilitates the issuance of overseas employment certificates (OEC) to applicants lacking the required travel documents.

De Castro explained applicants should secure the OEC before they are allowed to leave the country.

However, pertinent documents such as the verified employment contract, valid visa, and health certificates are needed to secure an OEC.

“Even without the necessary papers, a desperate applicant for overseas employment could get himself an OEC through the syndicate and he’s paying a hefty amount for it,” De Castro said.

De Castro said the syndicate is charging as much as P18,000 from anyone needing an OEC.

“This is P16,000 higher than the P2,000 fee which is legally collected by the POEA for the certificate,” he said.

De Castro said Paman and Gonzales are apparently working as runners for the syndicate.

“It would be impossible for this group to carry out their illegal operations without contacts inside and their arrests have already given us lead as to who are its operators inside the POEA,” he said.