Tag: registered sex offenders (RSOs)

Bureau of Immigration (BI) launches campaign against foreign sexual predators

Bureau of Immigration (BI) launches campaign against foreign sexual predators

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Having rejected several foreigners (who were registered sex offenders or RFOs) from entering the Philippines, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) recently launched a new campaign against sexual predators from overseas, according to a Journal Online news report. There is simply no stopping with their duty to protect the nation from undesirable foreigners.

To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the Journal Online news report. Some parts in boldface…

NOTING the recent increase in attempts of aliens who are registered sex offenders (RSOs) to enter the country, Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Norman Tansingco launched a campaign against sexual predators.

Seeing the need for a more focused approach against child exploitation, Tansingco said that in 2023 alone, the BI excluded 171 foreign nationals who were previously convicted of sex crimes or are wanted for such cases.

He said that the BI also apprehended multiple pedophiles in Philippine soil, among them French national Theddy Douglas Tissier who was apprehended in Makati just last December and the successful capture of octogenarian pedophile David John Buckley in Cebu last November.

“The threat against our children is real and is here. With the reopening of the country’s borders post-pandemic comes the rise of attempts of sexual predators to enter the country. We must protect those who rely on us for their safety,” the BI chief said.

Tansingco also encouraged citizens to immediately report to the BI sexual predators that might be in their communities, adding tehat “by protecting our children, we defend our future. Let us all do our share in protecting the most vulnerable from these undesirable aliens.”

In a ceremony held at the GSIS Theater in Pasay City, the BI led the launching of the Project Campaign, which is a three-tier effort of the agency to combat the rise of sexual predators. Joining Tansingco in the said event were Deputy Commissioners Joel Anthony Viado and Daniel Laogan.

Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) Head Undersecretary Nicholas Felix Ty served as the event’s guest speaker. Also in attendance was Undersecretary Angelo M. Tapales of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Project endeavors to harmonize government efforts against sex offenders in the country by institutionalizing a network of communication amongst government agencies involved in investigating and arresting pedophiles and traffickers.

The project also solidifies the BI’s drive against sexual predators by prioritizing cases against foreign nationals that might be involved in sex trafficking of children.

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? Do you think the BI should do more to not only prevent undesirable foreigners from entering the country but also apprehending and deporting the foreign sexual predators who are already in the country?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

Two foreign sex offenders prevented from entering the Philippines

Two foreign sex offenders prevented from entering the Philippines

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The Bureau of Immigration (BI) announced recently that they prevented two sex offenders from the United States from entering the country in separate times at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), according to a Manila Bulletin news report. Both foreigners were respectively convicted of varied offences in the past.

To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the Manila Bulletin news report. Some parts in boldface…

Two convicted American sex offenders have been barred from entering the Philippines when they arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) separately on Dec. 27 and Jan. 1.

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) identified them as Paul Neal Coltharp, 46, and Zachary Tyler Thompson, 39.

“Both aliens have been immediately excluded and flown back to their port of origin and their names have been included in the BI’s blacklist of undesirable aliens,” the bureau said.

As registered sex offenders (RSOs), the bureau explained “both Thompson and Coltharp are excludable aliens under the Immigration Act which forbids the entry of aliens convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude.”

It said that Thompson, who arrived from Los Angeles, had been  “convicted in 2013 and 2015 for possessing obscene materials depicting a minor in sexual conduct and for annoying or molesting a child under 18 years of age.”

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What is your reaction to this recent development? Do you think there still will be more registered sex offenders from overseas who will do what they can to visit the Philippines? Do you think the BI has what it takes to prevent undesirable aliens from entering as well as preventing the rise of sex tourism?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

The pending resurgence of sex tourism in the Philippines is a major concern for the BI

The pending resurgence of sex tourism in the Philippines is a major concern for the BI

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While the Philippines continues to attract more tourists from around the world (read the related post), the Bureau of Immigration (BI) is concerned about the pending resurgence of sex tourism in the country, according to a Manila Times news report. Already there have been reports of sex offenders from abroad who were intercepted by the local authorities.

To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the Manila Times report. Some parts in boldface…

 THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) has expressed alarm over the likely resurgence of sex tourism in the country as indicated by the frequent arrival and interception of foreign sex offenders (FSO) at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and other major ports of entry.

Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said on Sunday that entry attempts by sex offenders into the country have become almost a “daily trend” and are not limited to the national capital Manila, but are also in provincial airports such as Cebu.

Tansingco also said that some unscrupulous groups or individuals could be promoting sex tourism, the practice of traveling to foreign countries with the intention of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for money.

“We will not allow that to happen. We are duty-bound to implement a provision in our immigration act that prohibits the entry of aliens convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude. We will not allow the entry of these undesirable aliens to pose a threat to our women and children,” Tansingco said.

He attributed the possible resurgence of sex tourism to the reopening of the country’s border after the pandemic.

“During the pandemic, there was an increase in online exploitation of women and children. When international travel resumed, the number of FSOs rose, which could show that the exploitation is being continued,” he said. “With the return of tourism, foreigners who intend to abuse our hospitality seem to be returning.”

“We warn these predators not to attempt to enter the country, as we have close coordination with different governments, who provide us information about sex offenders that might attempt to enter the Philippines,” he said.

Under the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940, those who have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, which includes sex offenders, are ineligible to enter the country.

The Philippines is regarded as among the top 10 sex tourism destinations in the world. Others on the list are Germany, the Netherlands, Columbia, Thailand, the Dominican Republic, Spain, Kenya and Brazil.

Just over the weekend, BI frontline officers intercepted two more FSOs, identified as Mark David Scanlon and Richard Stuard Patterson, both Americans convicted of sexually molesting minors in the US. They arrived via separate flights at the international airports in Cebu and Manila.

Scanlon, 53, was intercepted after arriving aboard an Eva Air flight from Taiwan at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA), while Patterson, 33, was turned back upon arriving from Los Angeles via a Philippine Airlines flight at the NAIA 1 terminal.

Both passengers were sent back to their ports of origin hours after they were denied entry.

Information obtained by the BI revealed that in 2012, a court in Cook County, Illinois, convicted Scanlon on the charge of indecently soliciting a child over the internet.

On the other hand, Patterson was convicted in Oregon in May 2011 on the charges of sexual abuse in the second degree and sodomy in the third degree, where the victims were 15 and 13 years old, respectively.

Scanlon and Patterson are only two of the more than 150 foreign registered sex offenders (RSOs) who have been refused entry at the airports since January.

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: What do you think about this recent development? Do you consider sex-related tourism a major issue for the Philippines’ standing in international tourism? Do you think that there are lots of suspected business joints within your city that could secretly be engaging in prostitution, pornography and human trafficking? What do you think should be done to prevent sex tourism from growing in the Philippines? Do you think that illegal sex-related activities involving foreigners here in the Philippines (for insight, click here, here, and here) are somehow attracting foreign sex offenders to come into the country?

You may answer in the comments below. If you prefer to answer privately, you may do so by sending me a direct message online.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at  @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco