NBI nabs 12 foreign nationals for alleged human trafficking scheme

NBI logo over a shot of the facade of its headquarters

MANILA, Philippines — Five Chinese, six Filipinos, and one Malaysian allegedly involved in human trafficking were nabbed by authorities, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said on Tuesday.

They were arrested in two separate operations that led to the rescue of 27 Filipino girls, including four minors, according to NBI Cybercrime Division Chief Jeremy Lotoc.

In a press conference, Lotoc said perpetrators first looked for their potential victim via Telegram app.

READ: NBI nabs 29 Filipinos, foreigners in alleged scam hub in Cavite

They “groomed” or gained the trust of the victim before isolating them to their family and friends by making them emotionally or financially dependent on them.

The last stage of the trafficking scheme is exploitation, where the victim is used for sex trade.

“So ito ang modus nila, to avoid detection from law enforcement, ‘yung mode of recruitment nila hindi walk-in,” said Lotoc.

(So this is their modus, to avoid detection from law enforcement, their mode of recruitment is not walk-in.)

“Ano ho ito, endorsement scheme. So ‘yung unang victim naghahanap siya ng kakilala niya then ie-employ ‘yung usual method,” he added.

(What this is, is an endorsement scheme. So the first victim looks for someone they know and then employs the usual method.)

The suspects are facing human trafficking complaints, Lotoc said.