THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) arrested a South Korean man wanted in his home country for involvement in telecommunications fraud and drug trafficking last Feb. 6.

Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco identified the captured man as Sim Dongwoo, 43, who was arrested in Buenavista, Marinduque.

Sim was arrested on the strength of a warrant and will be deported shortly based on the deportation order from the BI board of commissioners issued against the Korean more than three years ago.

“We will thus deport him immediately so he could face trial for the crimes he allegedly committed. He was already included in our blacklist and perpetually banned from re-entering the country,” Tansingco said.

BI-Interpol unit data revealed that Sim became the subject of a red notice for being a member of a syndicate even before a warrant for his arrest was issued by the Seoul central district court in July 2021.

Sim and his cohorts allegedly defrauded their victims of more than 58 million won ($44,000) through voice phishing.

The suspects allegedly made random calls to victims by pretending to be financial advisors who offered fictitious loans in exchange for payment of processing fees.

Furthermore, authorities also alleged that Sim and his accomplices also peddled illegal drugs by smuggling from Manila into South Korea 200 grams of methamphetamine drug “Philopon” in September 2023.

The syndicate is suspected of having a total of more than a thousand grams of methamphetamine in five different occasions from August to December last year.

AUTHOR PROFILE

Jun I. Legaspi