Suspected Chinese mafia boss arrested

A SUSPECTED Chinese mafia leader and three of his men who are believed to be behind the proliferation of illegally acquired government-issued identification cards and documents were arrested by intelligence agents of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) in Palawan.

Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco on Monday identified the suspects as Wang Tao, Li Xiaoming, Go Zhi Yang and Lyu Zghiyang.

They were arrested before the Holy Week in Barangay San Pedro, Puerto Princesa City, following weeks of surveillance.

Several Philippine-issued IDs were seized from the four, including drivers' licenses, postal IDs, and birth certificates.

«The suspects are considered big fish, having illegally provided Philippine IDs to foreigners pretending to be Filipinos,» Tansingco said.

Lyu, who has the alias Ken Garcia Lee, allegedly heads a local syndicate providing the documents to undesirable aliens and trafficking victims.

BI Intelligence Division chief Fortunato Manahan Jr. said the operation was conducted in coordination with the Naval Forces West, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency 4B, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

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In March, Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers voiced his concern over the growing number of arrests and interceptions of foreign nationals holding Philippine documents.

The BI last year reported at least 10 cases of arrested fake Filipinos with authentic Philippine documents.

The suspects were transferred to the BI's facility in Bicutan, Taguig City, and face charges for misrepresentation and undesirability in violation of the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940.

Tansingco renewed his call to local government units to report to the BI foreigners conducting illegal activities in their areas, particularly those involved in identity fraud.

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«These foreign nationals use Philippine documents to avoid inspection, buy property, or even interfere in politics,» he said. «The arrest of Lyu and his gang will definitely hurt the operations of these entities, and hopefully put a stop to the proliferation of fraudulently acquired documents.»