PASAY CITY: Two Chinese men were recently arrested for allegedly presenting fake exit clearances at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in Pasay City, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) reported Monday. The men, identified as Wang Changru, 53, and Cui Wen, 33, were stopped from boarding a Cathay Pacific Airlines flight to Hong Kong for allegedly presenting counterfeit documents on January 24. Both individuals were also found to be overstaying, having arrived in the Philippines in 2019.

According to Philippines News Agency, BI NAIA 3 head Dennis Javier reported that the two Chinese nationals presented emigration clearance certificates (ECC) supposedly issued on January 23, which stated that they were authorized to stay in the country until February. Javier noted that the men failed to recognize the capability of the centralized database to detect actual arrivals and verify the documents presented.

The ECCs provided by Wang and Cui were later confirmed to be counterfeit, which led to their arrest by BI officers. The two foreigners have been turned over to the BI's legal division and will face deportation cases for violation of the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940.