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BI obtains records of alleged Chinese spy
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Wednesday said it had obtained the records of the Chinese national who was arrested over alleged espionage activities in the Philippines.
The BI said in a statement on Friday that the alleged spy has been assimilating himself into the country for over ten years.
According to BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado, the 39-year-old Chinese man has been traveling in and out of the Philippines since 2013 and is allegedly married to a Filipina.
He added that due to the marriage, he obtained a permanent resident visa in the country, and has been residing in Metro Manila.
Viado said the Immigration Bureau shared their information with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the NBI for investigation.
The BI chief also said the agency will conduct deportation proceedings against the foreigner to add to the possible charges he may face in the Philippines.
“We are not taking this lightly. Any threat to our sovereignty will warrant the full action of BI, in coordination with other law enforcement agencies,” he added.
The Chinese national, along with two Filipinos, was nabbed on Monday.
The group allegedly visited military camps, bases, power plants, offices of local government units, police camps, seaports, airports, and shopping malls frequently.
They also visited Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) sites and collated data that they transmitted through a remote application on their equipment.
“Meron hong user ‘yung application na ‘yun, remotely, na nasa labas ng ating bansa. Kino-collate ‘yung mga data na nakukuha nitong subject group natin,” NBI Cybercrime Division chief Jeremy Loto said.
(That application has a user who is outside the country. They are collecting the data that the subject group gathered.)
The Armed Forces of the Philippines earlier said the data could be used for military purposes.
—with Jiselle Anne Casucian/VAL/VBL, GMA Integrated News
