Immigration deports overstaying Japanese man

MANILA, Philippines - A 31-year-old Japanese national was deported last week for being an overstaying and undesirable alien, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported yesterday.

In a statement, BI Commissioner Marcelino Libanan said Hiroaki Ogino was sent to Narita, Japan in a Philippine Airlines flight.

Prior to his deportation, Libanan said Ogino languished in jail for six years on illegal recruitment charges that were later dismissed in 2008.

BI operatives arrested Ogino in Davao City on Nov. 27, 2003 after receiving several complaints from people who said Ogino and an accomplice assured them they have connections in the Japanese embassy and could secure them tourist and working visas for a price.

The victims reportedly gave the suspects P150,000 to P350,000 each, but did not receive the promised visas.

This prompted the complainants to seek the help of the BI, which arrested Ogino and detained him at the BI jail in Bicutan.

The charges against Ogino, however, were dismissed by a Makati City court on May 13, 2008. The BI then worked on securing Ogino’s travel documents from the Japanese embassy to facilitate his deportation. – Evelyn Macairan