Atin Ito First Filipino Community Newspaper in Ontario
MANILA, Philippines — Two foreign pedophiles have been barred entry to the country during the holiday season after being tagged “undesirable aliens,” the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said on Monday.
In a statement, the BI identified the two aliens as American James Riley Grant, 44, who was turned away at the NinoyAquino International Airport (NAIA) terminal 3 last December 22 and Australian Gideon Hayes, 52, who arrived at the NAIA terminal 1 on December 20.
“We have noticed an upsurge in the arrival of foreign sex offenders in our ports. Despite published reports of their exclusions they keep coming here but we remain undeterred in our efforts to enforce the law against these unwanted aliens,” BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said in a statment.
Tansingco stated that passengers were disallowed from entering the country in accordance with a provision outlined in the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940.
According to Section 9 (a) of the law, individuals with convictions for crimes involving moral turpitude will be barred from entering the Philippines.
The BI said that Grant was listed as a registered sex offender in Jacksonville, Florida, with a conviction for sex crimes dating back 25 years.
Hayes, on the other hand, was convicted 19 years ago in Australia for indecent treatment of children, admitted sending money to Filipino children he had encountered online or during his prior visits.
The bureau also said that two foreign nationals have been blacklisted. — Ian Laqui
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Credit belongs to: www.philstar.com
