Illegal recruiter nabbed at POEA building

MANILA, Philippines–A suspected illegal recruiter was arrested at the premises of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration in Mandaluyong, POEA administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said on Thursday.

Cacdac said 19 applicants, all from the Ilocos provinces, sought the help of POEA guards in arresting suspect Sandy Rhein Agsalog Espina and brought him to the POEA’s Anti-Illegal Recruitment Branch for filing of formal charges.

In a joint affidavit, the complainants alleged that Espina, along with Alfred Chua and Cathy Molinar, recruited them in July and August 2012 and promised them jobs as salespersons, waiters, hotel workers and waiters in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, with salaries ranging from P30,000 to P50,000.

The complainants alleged that they were asked to pay an initial amount of P30,000 for placement fee and another P40,000 on the date of departure.

Cacdac said the three recruiters, who have neither POEA authority nor license to recruit or deploy Filipino overseas workers, have collected a little more than P500,000 from the 19 applicants.

The applicants claimed that the three recruiters asked them to be at POEA office on Aug. 28 supposedly for their pre-departure orientation seminar, medical tests, and for their supposed flight for UAE at 6:45 p.m. The complainants came but not one of the three recruiters appeared.

Cacdac said that when arrested on Aug. 29, Espina was supposed to meet with one of the complainants at the POEA office to collect the balance of his placement fee.

But unknown to Espina, all the other applicants trooped to POEA on the same day to verify if the recruiters have licenses to recruit.

Upon learning that the promised jobs were non-existent, they decided to confront Espina and arrested him.

Chua and Molinar did not show up and remain at large.

Cacdac advised overseas job applicants to verify first if the recruiter has authority to recruit and with approved job orders by calling the POEA hotlines 722-1144 and 722-1155 or by accessing the verification page of the POEA website poea.gov.ph.