BI arrests 83 total foreign fugitives in 2021

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Tuesday said that it had arrested a total of 83 foreign fugitives wanted in their home countries even amid the ongoing pandemic.

According to BI Commissioner Jaime Morente, the fugitives were arrested in operations conducted by the BI’s Fugitive Search Unit (FSU).

South Koreans topped the list of fugitives with 55 arrested, followed by Americans at eight, seven total Chinese, three Japanese, and three Taiwanese.

“Many of those arrested were involved in fraud, economic crimes, cybercrimes, and sexual offenses,” said BI FSU Chief Rendel Sy.

Notable arrests include the arrest of Lee Honhee and Seo Jungnam, both South Korean nationals, in January 2021. Lee was wanted in Incheon for attempted murder, while Seo for allegedly being a leader of an online prostitution ring.

Also arrested in 2021 was Ivaldi Antonello, an Italian with a warrant issued against him for rape, who was arrested at the BI Pampanga Field office in February, and Fujita Toshiya, a Japanese national was arrested in February for alleged involvement in telco fraud.

In April, South Koreans Jung Myunghun, Yu Daewoong, and Kang Wesung, who were among South Korea’s most wanted, were also arrested for being leaders of a big-time online scam.

In July, the FSU arrested Pascal Dider Gillot for alleged sexual abuse of minors, while Taiwanese Huang Kuan-I who was wanted for attempted murder for 17 years in his country, was arrested in September.

Another South Korean, Lee Jaehun, was arrested on December 21 for reportedly being the boss of an illegal online gambling mafia.

“Despite the challenges of the pandemic, we will not stop until we arrest each and every fugitive who take[s] advantage of the Filipino hospitality to escape their crimes,” said Morente.

“We will find them, arrest them, and deport them,” he warned.

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