BUREAU of Immigration authorities intercepted another suspected victim of illegal recruitment, highlighting the growing use of social media platforms by recruiters offering lucrative but questionable overseas jobs.
Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado on Tuesday said the passenger attempted to leave for Hong Kong.
During primary inspection, the passenger claimed he was traveling as a tourist for a five-day vacation sponsored by a friend.
But immigration officers noticed inconsistencies in his documents and referred him for secondary inspection by members of the Immigration Protection and Border Enforcement Section (I-Probes).
"Further questioning revealed that Hong Kong was merely a transit point and that his actual destination was Moscow, Russia," Viado added.
Authorities learned that the man had supposedly been recruited through Facebook and WhatsApp by people claiming to represent a staffing agency.
He was reportedly promised a monthly salary of $2,700 and was told that he could eventually qualify for Russian citizenship.
The passenger, however, failed to present the required employment contract, overseas employment clearance, or proof that he had undergone the legal deployment process for overseas workers.
Viado warned that illegal recruiters are increasingly turning to social media platforms to lure Filipinos with promises of high salaries, quick deployment, and attractive benefits abroad.
He said many of these offers turn out to be fraudulent, leaving victims vulnerable to exploitation, abuse, or dangerous working conditions overseas.
The BI chief urged aspiring overseas workers to verify all job offers through the Department of Migrant Workers and comply with legal deployment requirements designed to protect Filipino workers.
The interception comes amid continuing concerns over unauthorized overseas deployment schemes.
The BI noted the recent repatriation of 24 Filipino workers from Russia and reiterated its call for the public to seek employment only through legitimate channels and to report suspected illegal recruitment activities to authorities.