9 “illegal recruiters” charged in court

CEBU, Philippines - Nine officials and employees of a recruitment agency are facing a non-bailable crime of illegal recruitment after the Cebu City Prosecutor's Office has found probable cause to elevate the case before the court.

Aside from illegal recruitment, the prosecutor's office also recommended the filing of five counts of estafa against Francisco Batongbakal Jr., Fernando Geronimo, Annalisa Samson, Cynthia Mateo, Ronualdo Geronimo, Van Liwanag, Alisha Batac, Jess Miniano, and Daisy Ibarra of Global Alliance Consultancy and Immigration Specialist Incorporated.

Assistant city prosecutor Noel Cellona found sufficient evidence to hold the respondents for trial.

“The evidence submitted is uncontested. It is sufficient to establish as fact that the respondents connived with each other in recruiting the complainants for overseas work but failed to dispatch them. They received payments but failed to deploy them as promised,” Cellona's resolution reads.

The cases stemmed from the complaints filed by Cerila Mae Lagare, Llora Paz Torlao, Cloudy Rain Torlao, Rhea Villafuerte, and Sunshine San Juan before the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)-7.

The complainants said they learned about Global Alliance Consultancy and Immigration Specialist Incorporated through a friend, fliers, and newspaper advertisements where the agency is offering jobs abroad.

The agency also assured an allowance and an opportunity to acquire Green Card for its applicants. The complainants said they were promised salaries ranging from P60,000 to P80,000 per month. In return, complainants said they were required to pay processing fees and others.

The complainants have paid an amount ranging from P26,000 to P50,000 each. But in spite of their payment, the agency failed to deploy them abroad. This prompted the complainants to seek the assistance of the NBI.

The NBI found out that from the period July 2011 up to October 2011 the respondents were recruiting workers for non-existing jobs to the United States of America as volunteer caregivers in a Nursing Home either in New York, Texas or California.

A certification issued by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) states that the respondents are not authorized to recruit workers for overseas employment. The prosecutor's office has summoned the respondents to answer the complaint but failed.  (FREEMAN)