THE NATIONAL Bureau of Investigation (NBI) XI is investigating two immigration officers assigned to the Davao International Airport in connection with an alleged human trafficking attempt that occurred on Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025.
NBI XI director Arcelito Albao told reporters during a press briefing that the Bureau of Immigration is fully cooperating with the investigation.
“Based on our coordination yesterday, the Bureau of Immigration was very cooperative. They were the ones who encouraged the two immigration officers to voluntarily submit for investigation, and the two officers went to our office,” Albao said.
According to Albao, one of the officers, a male, has been assigned to Davao for a long time, while the other, a female from North Cotabato, has been assigned there for only two years.
The NBI director clarified that the officers are only under investigation because they were not arrested alongside the recruiters.
“We couldn’t get a statement from them to confirm if there was indeed communication with these two [officers], so that’s why we released them,” he explained.
Albao noted that this is the first time their office has investigated immigration officers.
He also revealed that the alleged recruiters are from both Davao and Manila.
“We don’t know the amount of the transaction because we were unable to arrest the recruiters who allegedly made contact,” he added.
Albao explained that the investigation was initiated because the three rescued victims identified the two immigration officers as the contacts of their recruiters.
However, the victims themselves had no direct contact with the officers, which is why the NBI is still trying to arrest the recruiters to gather more information.
Photo courtesy of Rhoda Grace B Saron
