Two illegal recruiters fall in QC
abs-cbnNEWS.com | 09/11/2008 9:55 PM
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The government's anti-illegal recruitment task force on Thursday reported the arrest of two suspected illegal recruiters who victimized Filipinos seeking employment in South Korea.
Sagisag Atlas Bautista, 26, of MB24 Unit 410, Pamayanang Diego Silang, Brgy. Ususan, Taguig City and Rosamel Cara De Guzman, 31, of block 2 lot 25, Rosewood Village, Tagapo Sr., Laguna were arrested during an entrapment operation in Quezon City.
The Task Force Against Illegal Recruitment is under Vice-President and presidential adviser on overseas Filipino workers Noli De Castro.
"Big and small, these illegal recruiters are being caught by our dedicated men in uniforms with the help of other concerned government agencies. With the cooperation of everybody including the victims, the fight against unscrupulous illegal recuiters won't be long," De Castro said in a press statement.
De Castro said the two were arrested on September 8 while in the act of accepting marked money from complainant Wilson Tiongco at a pizza parlor on the fourth floor of mall in the city.
The arresting team brought the suspects to the national police headquarters in Camp Crame for further investigation.
Authorities recovered the marked money, blank labor and employment contracts as well as the visas of the complainant and two overseas job applicants.
Police Superintendent Bernard Relato Yang of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group said Bautista and De Guzman face charges for violating Republic Act No. 8042 or the Filipino Overseas and Migrant Workers Act of 1995.
In his report to the CIDG’s Anti-Transnational Crime Division, Yang said the suspects already collected P210,000 from Tiongco and are still demanding additional money allegedly as processing fee for his overseas job application.
The suspects are victimizing applicants who want to gain employment in South Korea through a direct hiring scheme. However, it was also found out that the suspects have no license from the Philippine Overseas Employment Authority (POEA).
With the arrest, the de Castro advised would-be OFWs to be wary of illegal recruiters collecting fees in exchange for their promise of immediate employment abroad.
He reminded the public to verify first whether the employment agency concerned is licensed by the POEA.
