542 Illegal overseas workers arrested in raid on Pasay City BPO 0peration
Some 542 overseas workers, the majority of them Chinese, were arrested in a raid by immigration and police officials on a business process outsourcing firm in Pasay City. Speaking in the wake of the raid, immigration commissioner Jamie Morente said the overseas workers had been arrested as they had been unable to produce working permits, while the company that employed them was apparently engaged in an investment scam.
While the company in question was said to have been earlier issued a mayor’s permit for “support services,” its oversees employees were allegedly targeting individuals in mainland China as part of a telecommunications fraud, according to, Fortunato Manahan Jr, the head of immigration intelligence. Outlining the likely consequences, Morente said the illegal workers, including several Chinese, Burmese, Malaysian, Vietnamese, Taiwanese and Indonesian employees, may be deported pending investigation. He also indicated that the local authorities will investigate to see if they have committed any criminal acts, while the immigration bureau will deport them if they are found to have violated immigration regulations. The arrested workers are currently being held in Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig, a city in the wider Metro Manila region.
