Consul General Elmer G. Cato presents to Italian Prefect Renato Saccone copies of work permits that the Philippine Consulate in Milan wanted verified as part of its investigation of cases of fraud and illegal recruitment that victimized over 200 Filipinos. The meeting took place on September 4. (Photo from Philippine Consulate in Milan)
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Consulate in Milan on Monday said it is working with Italian authorities since last month in its investigation on the cases of fraud and illegal recruitment which have victimized over 200 Filipinos.
Consul General Elmer Cato, in a statement said he met with Prefect Renato Saccone, the highest ranking Italian federal government representative in Milan on Sept. 4, and has requested the Italian official’s assistance in verifying the authenticity of the Italian work permits gathered from complainants and witnesses in Italy and the Philippines.
After the documents were determined to be spurious, Cato said Sacconne immediately created a task force that will assist complainants in filing the appropriate cases against those involved.
“This was just among the actions the Consulate took to protect the interests of our kababayan,” Cato said.
Cato said the meeting with Saccone took place after the Consulate started receiving complaints from relatives and representatives of around 215 jobseekers in the Philippines who said they lost over P38.7 million.
Cato reiterated his call for other complainants to come forward to file their complaints against the agencies that have defrauded them.
He said that the Consulate is expecting several Filipinos to formally file their complaint. Fifty one individuals have already filed complaints against three individuals and two agencies, as of Monday.
The Consulate, at the same time, said several more members of the Filipino Community have come forward to request assistance following its announcement that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) will provide Italian lawyers to assist complainants in filing cases against the individuals and agencies involved.