MANILA, Philippines - The Bureau of Immigration is looking into reports that the Laoag International Airport (LIA) is being used by foreigners to enter and leave the Philippines illegally after BI personnel arrested nine Chinese who carried fake immigration documents, an official said yesterday.
Associate Commissioner Gilbert Repizo told The STAR they apprehended the Chinese as they were about to leave for China last Saturday.
“I have been hearing for sometime stories that it (LIA) is being used as entry and exit points of illegal, undocumented overstaying aliens,” he said.
Repizo said the LIA may have been used in human smuggling during the past few years.
The influx of foreigners may be connected to popular entertainment and gambling establishments in northern Luzon.
There are chartered flights at LIA because of these establishments, Repizo said, adding that they suspect “these illegal aliens enter the country by blending with the customers of these gambling establishments.”