Filipino workers in a lurch due to fake visa

A group of Filipino workers has alleged that they have been cheated by a Filipina who offered to extend their work visa. According to them, the woman charged between RM10,000 and RM12,000 for the service.

“She personally affixes immigration employment passes on customers’ passports once obtaining the relevant approval from the ‘authorities’.

“Over 20 of her customers are now left in a lurch, as they later learnt that the visa, despite looking authentic, turned out to be fake,” said Pinoy Support Group Penang chief Lolita Pranggos at the district police station here yesterday.

Pranggos said the woman had come highly recommended by the Filipino workers in Penang, as she offered to “clear” any outstanding immigration offences of workers at a cost of RM3,000, and RM9,000 to get a work visa.

She said the woman doubled as an immigration service agent while working as a full-time kindergarten teacher.

Pranggos also said 14 police reports had been lodged so far, including five at the Patani Road police station yesterday.

“Some of the victims have used up their savings and even borrowed from loan sharks to get the visa,” said Pranggos.

One of the victims, who wanted to be known as Dennis, said he had paid RM10,000 for a general worker visa after being recommended by a friend.

The 55-year-old said the visa was given to him in February.

However, a friend who received the same type of pass found out it was fake.

Dennis said the friend was deported from Thailand after the kingdom’s immigration found the work visa to be illegitimate.

He said a video of the woman sticking an employment pass was caught on camera, as one of her customers had posted it on Instagram stories, in paying tribute to her.

He claimed that the police were quick to dismiss the video as merely a “TikTok video” and was not incriminating enough.

Meanwhile, George Town OCPD Asst Comm Soffian Santong said the case was being investigated since February last year, when similar reports were received on the same woman.

He said the Filipina along with a local man and a Pakistani man were arrested in February under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.

The Pakistani, he said, was deported for overstaying, while the Filipina and the local man were released on police bail pending further investigation.

“Further investigation was requested by the prosecutor’s office. However, the probe was stalled slightly when the movement control order took effect in March.

“We will investigate the matter thoroughly and have opened four investigating papers to date,” said ACP Soffian.

She personally affixes immigration employment passes on customers’ passports once obtaining the relevant approval from the ‘authorities’.

Lolita Pranggos