Authorities arrest 3 ‘fake’ Filipinos with PH papers

Inquirer photo/Niño Jesus Orbeta

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Monday expressed concern over the continued proliferation of foreigners fraudulently acquiring Philippine identities after it arrested three suspected “fake” Filipinos in Zamboanga del Sur last week.

In a statement, Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the illegal practice remains prevalent, with foreign nationals still managing to get official documents identifying them as Filipinos despite being ineligible for Philippine citizenship.

Viado warned that these foreign nationals could be embedding themselves in the country to conduct espionage activities or crimes.

READ: Senate probe sought on foreigners using fake papers to pose as Filipinos

The BI chief said that in coordination with intelligence units of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and members of the 53rd Infantry Battalion, immigration intelligence operatives in the Zamboanga Peninsula conducted a series of operations on June 16 that led to the arrest of Wang Yunpeng, 46, in Purok Magallanes, Barangay Tikwas in Dumalinao, Zamboanga del Sur.

“Wang was found to be misrepresenting himself as a Filipino and was allegedly in possession of documentation saying the same,” the BI said, adding that he admitted he had been operating a coconut charcoal business since 2022 without a proper visa and the necessary permits.

Arrested along with him was Liu Yang, 45, who was found working without a permit for Wang.

The BI said that on the same day, authorities also took into custody Lin Shaozhang, 34, who was found managing a shopping center in Molave, Zamboanga del Sur.

Licensed to drive

The bureau said that Lin possessed a Philippine driver’s license, indicating he is a Filipino.

The same document was found on a Chinese man identified as Wang Jingcai, 41, who was arrested while manning a cellphone shop nearby.

“All subjects were brought to the Zamboanga del Sur Provincial Police Office for inquiry, police blotter, and safekeeping and were transferred the following day to the BI facility in Bicutan, Taguig, where they shall remain while facing a deportation case,” the BI said.

Public awareness about the proliferation of foreigners using legitimate Philippine official documents to pose as Filipinos was heightened last year by the case of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo.

During a Senate hearing, Guo, who was under investigation for her involvement in an illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator hub in her town, was exposed as a Chinese citizen after her fingerprints and immigration records matched those of a certain Guo Hua Ping.

The former mayor is currently in jail for several charges, including money laundering, qualified trafficking, graft, and falsification of public documents. /cb