THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) said it is poised to deport a Japanese national wanted by authorities in Tokyo for fraud and money laundering.
Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said 37-year-old Hiroyuki Kawasaki was arrested last Aug. 14 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 while he was about to board a Philippine Airlines flight to Singapore.
Tansingco said Kawasaki registered a positive hit in the BI’s Interpol derogatory check system while being processed by an immigration officer which prompted the latter to refer him to his supervisors for further inspection.
The BI supervisors then verified the passenger’s identity with the bureau’s Interpol unit which confirmed that he and the person who is subject of a red notice are one and the same.
Kawasaki was later committed to the BI warden facility in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig City where he remains while awaiting deportation.
According to Tansingco, Kawasaki was placed in the BI watchlist last Aug. after was charged with a deportation case for being an undesirable alien.
The Japanese government had reportedly sought his arrest and deportation based on the charge of falsification of official documents and financial fraud.
Citing information obtained from Interpol-Manila, Tansingco said Kawasaki was accused of falsifying the electronic record of notarized deeds which he and his cohorts used to defraud several Japanese companies of their bank deposits.
“Japanese authorities also alleged that Kawasaki was responsible creating several shell companies which he used to siphon the funds of legitimate corporations who engaged his services as their investment manager,” the BI chief added.
The shell companies were allegedly used as vehicles to launder the funds that Kawasaki and his accomplices illegally withdrew from the bank accounts of their victims.
Tansingco said the Japanese fugitive will be sent back to Tokyo as soon as the BI board of commissioners issues the order for his summary deportation.
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