THIS IS ANOTHER SCAM IN THE PHILIPPINES... IT'S HAPPENING AT THE AIRPORTS IN MANILA, CEBU, DAVAO, AND ALL OVER THE PHILIPPINES. ALL TYPES OF PASSENGERS ARE TARGETED FOR THIS EXTORTION SCAM BY GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS.
NAIA Most Dangerous Airport in the World
![The Philippine Star]({"default":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AA2KjJu.img?h=50&w=50&m=6&q=60&u=t&o=t&l=f&f=png"})
The Philippine Star
Jarius Bondoc
Presidential
spokesman Edwin Lacierda tried in vain to belittle the latest racket at
the airports. “Six cases, maybe more,” he casually quoted Transport
Sec. Joseph Abaya about departing passengers caught recently with
bullets in their luggage at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport
(NAIA).
But for ordinary Filipinos, the incidents are simply one too many. Relatives and friends working or living abroad will come to visit this Christmas. They wouldn’t want them to be framed too with false charges, then extorted of thousands of pesos, for “illegal possession of live ammunition.” So they angrily have been crying for action in the social media, the modern-day weapon against inept, insensitive officials.
The scam, by rogue airport policemen, has become so prevalent that Netizens have coined a name for it: “tanim bala (bullet planting).” It’s usually pulled off at the baggage x-ray booth. Security inspectors deftly slip a bullet or two into the side pocket of a valise, then accost the owner to shake him down for all he’s worth. The harassed passenger usually gives in, lest he be offloaded from his flight, booked for the heinous offense, and branded a “terrorist” for life. The crooks have become so good at it that they can stuff the incriminating evidence with their hands in the back. They know how to avoid detection by CCTV security cameras, which are low-grade to begin with so the images are blurry.
The latest victim, like most of the rest, is least likely to be typified a terrorist. A 56-year-old provincial working for 20 years as a domestic in Hong Kong, she had no explicable use for the two 9-mm. rounds that the cops found in her carry-on bag the other weekend. In fact she was only transiting at NAIA back to overseas work, and so had been checked and cleared at her airport of origin in Laoag, Ilocos Norte. Realizing too late that they were preying on the wrong victim, the racketeers could not clear their tracks in time. The passenger adamantly refused to pull out the “suspicious items” as ordered, so they handcuffed and dragged her away, creating a scene.
Only weeks before her also were arrested an American missionary and a Japanese tourist. Their ordeals came to light only after a Filipino immigrant to the US detailed on Facebook how she had been set up with one live bullet and one shell in her bag for shakedown, but let off on a relatively light “fine” of P500 ($11) because she was wheelchair-bound so an unlikely gun-running merchant of death.
The arrest of a Japanese businessman, at NAIA the same Sunday and under the same circumstances as the jailed woman, attracted foreign media attention. Malacañang, which heretofore has been claiming the incidents to be isolated, was forced to “order an investigation.” But to what extent is iffy, as always when its friends are involved. The sickly NAIA general manager is a cousin of President Noynoy Aquino. Transport chief Abaya, ex-aide-de-camp of his late President-mother Cory Aquino, is treated as the little brother P-Noy never had. The NAIA airport police is a virtual private army separate from the PNP; and the transport security office, always quick to deny the existence of any racket, reports straight to Abaya. So expect no heads to roll. The crooks that arrested the poor woman have come up with a nifty story on why her bullets had eluded detection at the Laoag airport: the x-ray machine supposedly was busted.
It seems to not matter that the Manila airport is named after P-Noy’s democracy martyr-father. Due to its poor services and facilities, like the three-year-long runway congestion, NAIA has been branded among the world’s worst. All Philippine airports might soon be called the most dangerous. For, the “tanim bala” appears to be going on elsewhere.
As Lacierda chattered on government radio Saturday, an engineer was being arrested at the Davao International Airport for having – again – two 9-mm. rounds in his overnight bag. He was returning to Manila from where he had flown to inspect a waterworks, so had no reason too to be carrying ammo. He had to post a P120,000-cash bond to be let go.
The day before, two outbound Filipino overseas workers separately were accosted at the NAIA, with an M16 and a .45-caliber round. It would seem that an armory frantically is being built. GMA News reports that airport cops have “confiscated” from passengers 3,250 pieces of ammunition since the start of the year. That, along with “tanim droga (drug planting),” foreign currency shortchanging of new arrivals in need of pesos, taxi overcharging, and outright holdup are signs that the country now belongs to lawmen-turned-outlaws.
* * *
Source: http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/opinion/naia-most-dangerous-airport-in-the-world/ar-BBmHj8p?li=AAb280R
MORE UPDATES ON THIS:
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/opinion/naia-most-dangerous-airport-in-the-world/ar-BBmHj8p?li=AAb280R
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/national/2-more-caught-with-bullets-at-naia/ar-BBmWRCN?li=AAb280R
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/national/victims-bare-naia-extortion-in-%E2%80%98tanim-bala%E2%80%99-probe/ar-BBmVVvm?li=AAb280R
But for ordinary Filipinos, the incidents are simply one too many. Relatives and friends working or living abroad will come to visit this Christmas. They wouldn’t want them to be framed too with false charges, then extorted of thousands of pesos, for “illegal possession of live ammunition.” So they angrily have been crying for action in the social media, the modern-day weapon against inept, insensitive officials.
The scam, by rogue airport policemen, has become so prevalent that Netizens have coined a name for it: “tanim bala (bullet planting).” It’s usually pulled off at the baggage x-ray booth. Security inspectors deftly slip a bullet or two into the side pocket of a valise, then accost the owner to shake him down for all he’s worth. The harassed passenger usually gives in, lest he be offloaded from his flight, booked for the heinous offense, and branded a “terrorist” for life. The crooks have become so good at it that they can stuff the incriminating evidence with their hands in the back. They know how to avoid detection by CCTV security cameras, which are low-grade to begin with so the images are blurry.
The latest victim, like most of the rest, is least likely to be typified a terrorist. A 56-year-old provincial working for 20 years as a domestic in Hong Kong, she had no explicable use for the two 9-mm. rounds that the cops found in her carry-on bag the other weekend. In fact she was only transiting at NAIA back to overseas work, and so had been checked and cleared at her airport of origin in Laoag, Ilocos Norte. Realizing too late that they were preying on the wrong victim, the racketeers could not clear their tracks in time. The passenger adamantly refused to pull out the “suspicious items” as ordered, so they handcuffed and dragged her away, creating a scene.
Only weeks before her also were arrested an American missionary and a Japanese tourist. Their ordeals came to light only after a Filipino immigrant to the US detailed on Facebook how she had been set up with one live bullet and one shell in her bag for shakedown, but let off on a relatively light “fine” of P500 ($11) because she was wheelchair-bound so an unlikely gun-running merchant of death.
The arrest of a Japanese businessman, at NAIA the same Sunday and under the same circumstances as the jailed woman, attracted foreign media attention. Malacañang, which heretofore has been claiming the incidents to be isolated, was forced to “order an investigation.” But to what extent is iffy, as always when its friends are involved. The sickly NAIA general manager is a cousin of President Noynoy Aquino. Transport chief Abaya, ex-aide-de-camp of his late President-mother Cory Aquino, is treated as the little brother P-Noy never had. The NAIA airport police is a virtual private army separate from the PNP; and the transport security office, always quick to deny the existence of any racket, reports straight to Abaya. So expect no heads to roll. The crooks that arrested the poor woman have come up with a nifty story on why her bullets had eluded detection at the Laoag airport: the x-ray machine supposedly was busted.
It seems to not matter that the Manila airport is named after P-Noy’s democracy martyr-father. Due to its poor services and facilities, like the three-year-long runway congestion, NAIA has been branded among the world’s worst. All Philippine airports might soon be called the most dangerous. For, the “tanim bala” appears to be going on elsewhere.
As Lacierda chattered on government radio Saturday, an engineer was being arrested at the Davao International Airport for having – again – two 9-mm. rounds in his overnight bag. He was returning to Manila from where he had flown to inspect a waterworks, so had no reason too to be carrying ammo. He had to post a P120,000-cash bond to be let go.
The day before, two outbound Filipino overseas workers separately were accosted at the NAIA, with an M16 and a .45-caliber round. It would seem that an armory frantically is being built. GMA News reports that airport cops have “confiscated” from passengers 3,250 pieces of ammunition since the start of the year. That, along with “tanim droga (drug planting),” foreign currency shortchanging of new arrivals in need of pesos, taxi overcharging, and outright holdup are signs that the country now belongs to lawmen-turned-outlaws.
* * *
Source: http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/opinion/naia-most-dangerous-airport-in-the-world/ar-BBmHj8p?li=AAb280R
MORE UPDATES ON THIS:
How
NAIA victims are chosen
MANILA – Airport security screening personnel
are allegedly employing ''spotters'' to help them find the
''perfect'' passenger to victimize with their so-called
''tanim-bala'' scheme, a reliable source told ABS-CBN News.
The source disclosed to airport reporters that the nefarious activities of the syndicate have gone unabated for the past 20 years, and even the dilapidated closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed at the four airport terminals cannot detect how bullets end up in the luggage of their victims.
It was also disclosed that the conspirators or spotters normally prey on passengers who have a connecting flight to international or domestic destinations.
The alleged spotters, according to the source, usually distract passengers before they open the latter's baggage and swiftly plant the bullet.
20 VICTIMS A DAY?
The source said, before the tanim-bala modus operandi was exposed and reported by the media, the group normally victimized more than 20 passengers a day, raking hundreds of thousands of pesos from passengers who do not want to be hassled.
The source also disclosed that the tanim-bala modus operandi is already an open-secret activity of some unscrupulous airport security screeners, who get 60 percent of the bribes. The remaining 40 percent go to the alleged spotters.
The source said spotters normally mix themselves with the crowd at the departure or arrival area and are quite familiar in profiling passengers and executing the modus operandi.
LIFESTYLE CHECK
The source added that by simply conducting a lifestyle check on all security screeners, it can be determined who among them are involved in illegal activities.
The source is a spouse of a deceased airport security screener who was involved in the tanim-bala modus operandi.
Her intention in exposing the modus is to help passengers avoid being victimized by the alleged syndicate.
OUTRAGE GROWING
The scam was first exposed in the media in September, when a Facebook post of a balikbayan who claimed to have been victimized by the tanim-bala scheme went viral.
The wheelchair-bound balikbayan said she paid P500 to the airport security personnel to allow her to depart the country.
An American tourist was also detained after a bullet was found in the pocket of his luggage. He also claimed being victimized by the same scheme.
Public rage against the alleged modus operandi was reignited when an ABS-CBN News exclusive report revealed that a long-time Hong Kong overseas Filipino worker was arrested at the NAIA after a bullet was found in her bag.
With the issue getting bigger, Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya ordered an investigation into the alleged scam. The Office for Transportation Security, which handles airport security screeners, is under the DOTC.
An online petition urging presidential aspirants Senators Grace Poe and Miriam Defensor Santiago to investigate the so-called ''tanim-bala'' scheme has gained the support of thousands of Filipinos, with the petitioners expecting more signatures.
'AVOID BEING A VICTIM'
The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) earlier issued tips to air transport passengers on how to avoid falling prey to those who extort money using this scheme.
CAAP spokesperson Eric Apolonio said passengers are advised to strictly monitor all their luggage and never allow strangers to handle them.
Apolonio said all zippers, pouches, and pockets of their luggage must be closed, locked and sealed so that if the seal gets broken, a passenger will immediately notice that his bag was opened without his permission.
When passing through airport security X-ray and walk-thru metal detectors, CAAP said passengers should never lose sight of their respective luggage. They should immediately retrieve their bags as they exit the X-ray machine.
Apolonio added that passengers should also refrain from accepting any luggage or items from strangers.
The source disclosed to airport reporters that the nefarious activities of the syndicate have gone unabated for the past 20 years, and even the dilapidated closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed at the four airport terminals cannot detect how bullets end up in the luggage of their victims.
It was also disclosed that the conspirators or spotters normally prey on passengers who have a connecting flight to international or domestic destinations.
The alleged spotters, according to the source, usually distract passengers before they open the latter's baggage and swiftly plant the bullet.
20 VICTIMS A DAY?
The source said, before the tanim-bala modus operandi was exposed and reported by the media, the group normally victimized more than 20 passengers a day, raking hundreds of thousands of pesos from passengers who do not want to be hassled.
The source also disclosed that the tanim-bala modus operandi is already an open-secret activity of some unscrupulous airport security screeners, who get 60 percent of the bribes. The remaining 40 percent go to the alleged spotters.
The source said spotters normally mix themselves with the crowd at the departure or arrival area and are quite familiar in profiling passengers and executing the modus operandi.
LIFESTYLE CHECK
The source added that by simply conducting a lifestyle check on all security screeners, it can be determined who among them are involved in illegal activities.
The source is a spouse of a deceased airport security screener who was involved in the tanim-bala modus operandi.
Her intention in exposing the modus is to help passengers avoid being victimized by the alleged syndicate.
OUTRAGE GROWING
The scam was first exposed in the media in September, when a Facebook post of a balikbayan who claimed to have been victimized by the tanim-bala scheme went viral.
The wheelchair-bound balikbayan said she paid P500 to the airport security personnel to allow her to depart the country.
An American tourist was also detained after a bullet was found in the pocket of his luggage. He also claimed being victimized by the same scheme.
Public rage against the alleged modus operandi was reignited when an ABS-CBN News exclusive report revealed that a long-time Hong Kong overseas Filipino worker was arrested at the NAIA after a bullet was found in her bag.
With the issue getting bigger, Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya ordered an investigation into the alleged scam. The Office for Transportation Security, which handles airport security screeners, is under the DOTC.
An online petition urging presidential aspirants Senators Grace Poe and Miriam Defensor Santiago to investigate the so-called ''tanim-bala'' scheme has gained the support of thousands of Filipinos, with the petitioners expecting more signatures.
'AVOID BEING A VICTIM'
The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) earlier issued tips to air transport passengers on how to avoid falling prey to those who extort money using this scheme.
CAAP spokesperson Eric Apolonio said passengers are advised to strictly monitor all their luggage and never allow strangers to handle them.
Apolonio said all zippers, pouches, and pockets of their luggage must be closed, locked and sealed so that if the seal gets broken, a passenger will immediately notice that his bag was opened without his permission.
When passing through airport security X-ray and walk-thru metal detectors, CAAP said passengers should never lose sight of their respective luggage. They should immediately retrieve their bags as they exit the X-ray machine.
Apolonio added that passengers should also refrain from accepting any luggage or items from strangers.
EVEN MORE UPDATES ON THIS:
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/119587/lola-nagwala-sa-bala--bullet-found-in-bag-of-65-yr-old-on-way-to-watch-grandson-play-in-singapore
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/regions/10/31/15/engineer-nabbed-for-bullets-in-bag-at-davao-airport
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/focus/10/30/15/how-victims-are-spotted-in-tanim-bala-modus
http://www.philstar.com/metro/2015/10/28/1515625/japanese-ofw-arrested-naia-bullets-bag
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/national/one-bullet-in-baggage-enough-to-get-passenger-arrested-%E2%80%94sec-abaya/ar-BBmHFUM?li=AAb280R
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/regions/10/31/15/engineer-nabbed-for-bullets-in-bag-at-davao-airport
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/focus/10/30/15/how-victims-are-spotted-in-tanim-bala-modus
http://www.philstar.com/metro/2015/10/28/1515625/japanese-ofw-arrested-naia-bullets-bag
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/national/one-bullet-in-baggage-enough-to-get-passenger-arrested-%E2%80%94sec-abaya/ar-BBmHFUM?li=AAb280R
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/opinion/naia-most-dangerous-airport-in-the-world/ar-BBmHj8p?li=AAb280R
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/national/2-more-caught-with-bullets-at-naia/ar-BBmWRCN?li=AAb280R
http://www.msn.com/en-ph/news/national/victims-bare-naia-extortion-in-%E2%80%98tanim-bala%E2%80%99-probe/ar-BBmVVvm?li=AAb280R
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