BI deports Mongolia’s fugitive ex-minister

MANILA, Philippines — Former Mongolian minister for food, agriculture and light industry Tunjin Badamjunai, who is wanted for corruption, was deported by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Tuesday night.

Badamjunai’s deportation came within hours after his arrest in Cebu City, upon the request of Mongolian authorities, “to avoid further delay and inconvenience,” according to BI immigration intelligence chief Fortunato Manahan Jr. said in a statement.

Badamjunai’s deportation was immediate due to his being “a fugitive from justice and thus, poses a clear and present danger, risk to public interest and safety and a threat to national security,” Manahan said.

The BI also blacklisted Badamjunai to prevent him from returning to the country. He was in Cebu City supposedly to meet the Mongolian authorities when he was arrested.

He said that the Mongolian government has also canceled his passport, rendering him an undocumented alien in the Philippines.