(INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE)
MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Immigration (BI) barred at the Manila and Mactan – Cebu international airports two American previously convicted of committing sex crimes against minors.
The BI, in a statement on Monday, said the convicted sex offenders were both intercepted last January 13 and were immediately turned away by the agency’s Border Control and Intelligence Unit (BCIU) after confirming that they have records of convictions for sex offenses in the US.
The BCIU intercepted Carvin Renee White, 57, who arrived at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) aboard a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong, and Scott Edward Edson, 47, at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3 aboard a United Airlines flight from Guam.
“They were immediately booked on the first available flight to their port of origin as a consequence of exclusion orders that were issued against them by immigration officers for being undesirable aliens,” the BI said.
Citing the US government, White was convicted in 2002 for engaging in sexual misconduct with a 14-year-old girl.
Edson, on the other hand, was reportedly convicted in 1994 for raping a 13-year-old child.
The BI said both Americans have already been included in the BI blacklist, essentially banning them from entering the country.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said five foreign sex offenders have already been intercepted by immigration officers barely two weeks into 2024.
A total of 171 registered sex offenders were not allowed to enter the country in 2023.
“We have been warning these sex offenders that they are not welcome here. If we encounter them, we have no choice but to turn them back,” Tansingco said.
“We are duty-bound to prevent the entry of aliens who are deemed as excludable under our immigration laws,” he added.
Section 23(a) of the Philippine immigration act prohibits the entry of aliens who have been charged or convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude.