Korean nabbed with fake PH passport

INQUIRER.net stock photo

MANILA, Philippines — An overstaying Korean was arrested by Bureau of Immigration (BI) officers after he tried to leave the country using a fake Philippine passport.

Kwak Dong Hee, 26, was apprehended at the Departure Area of the NAIA Terminal 3 last Dec. 28, BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said in a statement on Sunday.

According to Morente, Kwak used the name of Erik Nacis, a half-Korean half-Filipino man born in Meycauayan, Bulacan, in 1992, in his fake Philippine passport.

“It was during questioning that he admitted his true identity as a Korean and that the Philippine passport he presented had been fraudulently-acquired,” Morente said, citing the report of an immigration officer who processed the documents of Kwak.

The immigration officer, Morente said, became suspicious of the identity of Kwak after he could not converse in Filipino.

According to supervisor Carlo Gomez of the BI Travel Control and Enforcement Unit, Kwak admitted during questioning that he bought the fake Philippine passport for more than P120,000 from a Korean compatriot in the Philippines.

“Our records check showed that Kwak last arrived in the Philippines on Aug. 27, 2015, hence he has already been overstaying for more than three years,” Gomez said.

Morente then warned foreigners to not engage in fraud in an attempt to leave the country.

“These schemes will not pass,” said Morente, adding that BI officers were trained to detect fraud.

“These aliens should not even consider attempting such schemes, lest they want to end up detained and deported.” /cbb