BI arrests 180 foreign fugitives, 40% increase

Last year, Bureau of Immigration (BI) operatives arrested 180 foreign fugitives, marking a 40% increase from the previous year's total of 128 arrests.

The majority of those apprehended were South Korean nationals at 74, followed by Chinese nationals with 62 arrests and other nationalities including Japanese, Americans, Italians, Australians, British, Canadian, German, Indian, Indonesian, Jordanian, Kyrgyzstani, Liberian, Nigerian, Serbian, Taiwanese, and Nepalese.

High-profile cases included six Japanese members of the 'Luffy' gang involved in scams, extortion, and fraud, as well as Australian Gregor Johann Haas and Serbian Predrag Mirkovic who are wanted for illegal drug activities.

The BI's fugitive search unit conducted operations across various locations nationwide to capture these alien criminals hiding within the country.

Nearly all of them have been deported back to their countries where they face criminal charges, as stated by BI-FSU Acting Chief Rendel Ryan Sy.