Woman arrested for swindling 2 would-be OFWs

MANILA, Philippines — A Filipina who once served time in a California prison for fraud and abuse of an elderly was arrested by lawmen in Quezon City last Wednesday for allegedly swindling two aspiring overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Benilda Batoon-Olivo, 62, alias Belinda Cariňo-Batoon, whose address was listed as No. 6 Interior Conchu St., Project 4, Quezon City, was cornered by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in Cubao during an entrapment operation.

NBI Director Nestor Mantaring on Friday said charges of fraud and violation of Republic Act 8042, the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipino Act of 1995, are being readied against the suspect, who is presently detained at the NBI jail in Manila.

Agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) female swindler who was earlier arrested in California, USA, for victimizing prospective overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) after claiming that she could facilitate visa applications overseas, arrested by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation last Wednesday in Cubao, Quezon City, the bureau reported on Friday.

A report by the NBI’s Background Investigation Division under head agent Arnold Lazaro said Olivo was arrested during an entrapment operation in Cubao following a complaint by Rosana Joves and Teresita Abando.

The complainants claimed that Olivo befriended them and asked if they were interested in working and eventually settling in Canada or the United States, adding that she could expedite their visa applications.

All they have to do was to prepare their income tax return, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) business name, and pay the respective fees—P30,000 for visa application; P34,000 for DTI business name; P45,000 for ITR; P45,000 for the consul; and P45,000 for the plane ticket.

Joves said he paid P145,600 while Abando was required to pay the initial amount of P30,000 for visa application for Canada.

When Olivo’s promise of immediate deployment did not materialize, the complainants asked her to demand their money back. But she never returned any, prompting the complainants to seek NBI assistance.

On Wednesday, an entrapment was planned, with pay-off set 5 p.m. inside a fastfood chain located at the Araneta Center in Cubao.

After Olivo received the marked money, NBI agents announced her arrest.

Investigation by NBI later found that the suspect was once sentenced to prison in California after she was convicted of 13 felony counts of securities fraud and elder abuse.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said Olivo was neither authorized nor licensed to recruit workers for overseas employment.

NBI officials said other victims of Olivo have come to file their complaints after learning of her arrest. - GMANews.TV .

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more