Police officials in Pasay City alerted Filipinos who are returning from abroad about a modus operandi operated near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) that targets them. They are advised to be cautious against opening the doors or windows of their vehicles to beggars or streetchildren that might approach them along the streets near NAIA to avoid being hurt or losing valuables. This modus is apparently done by a gang called “gagamba boys,” a group of males which are mostly in their teens.

According to Rodolfo Llorca, the chief Senior Superintendent of Pasay City police, a member of the gang would persistently knock or rap on the vehicles of balikbayans and when the passenger finally opened it, other gang members would proceed to take whatever valuable items that they can get. The poor victims take the risk of being hurt if they resist as there are cases when gang members hit the heads of the victims.

Llorca also said that these “gagamba boys” usually schedule their attack around 9 am because they know that this is the usual arrival time of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). It is also a time when traffic is worse so they can freely do their scam.

The Pasay police chief admitted that they are having a difficult time stopping this modus because they cannot arrest the gang members which are mostly minors. They can only turn them over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) which would also release them after a few hours or a few days.

Filipinos abroad who are looking for a cargo forwarder to deliver their balikbayan boxes to their loved ones back home should make sure that they are dealing with a reputable company.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) recently put cargo forwarding companies in its blacklisted list due to complaints of missing cargoes. The DTI even requested the assistance ofPhilippineembassies worldwideto sharethe warning to more Filipino migrants.

The Information Officer of DTI Region 1, Amelia Galvez said,“This is to help overseas Filipino workers (OFW) that the packages they ship to their families and relatives in thePhilippineswill be delivered on-time and safely.”

Check the list of unaccredited foreign consolidators and cargo forwarders that were blacklisted by the government agency.

It is a sad truth but swindlers will use even an unfortunate tragedy to victimize individuals. Apparently there are unscrupulous individuals and groups that would set up a fund drive for victims of calamities such as the recent typhoon “Pablo” that left many people in Mindanao and Visayas homeless and devastated.

For this reason, the congressman of San Juan, JV Ejercito warned overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) against persons or organizations that would solicit funds for donation purposes. To be sure that their money would be able to help those who are really in need, they should donate funds only to reputable organizations such as the Philippine Red Cross.

The congressman said, “I hope the government would look into these fraudulent donation schemes. There are always opportunists who exploit people in times of calamity.”

He also suggested that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) should provide a list of legal and reputable relief organizations and groups to avoid having victims of donation schemes.

Labor Secretary, Rosalinda Baldoz warned Filipinos who wish to work in Kuwait against the use of commercial visas. Baldoz issued the warning after receiving reports from the Labor Attaché of Kuwait regarding modus operandis where OFWs holding commercial visas do not receive salary and experienced abuse from employers.

To avoid problems while working in Kuwait, the DOLE advises OFWs that are using commercial visas to first return to the Philippines and apply for their work visas here.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) continues  to expose different schemes that are used by scrupulous individuals to rob money from Filipino jobseekers. This time, the government informs jobseekers about an email scam that offers fake jobs to Filipino nurses and other medical workers in an Australian Hospital.

According to the POEA chief, Hans Leo J. Cacdac, they received another email that is allegedly from Sydney Adventist, a legitimate hospital based in New South Wales, Australia. This email is similar to the one that is supposedly from Stevenson Memorial Hospital in Canada that offers “Visa Interview Coaching” upon payment of Php 3,888.00.

The difference is that the email that claims to be from Australia charges PhP3,750.00 for a two-day “British English” training.

 Read the complete article about this email scam.