Illegally Entry, 5 Filipino Citizens Arrested By Siak Riau Immigration

PHOTO VIA Antara

SIAK - Class II Immigration Office (TPI) Siak, Riau, detained five Filipino citizens for entering Indonesian territory illegally through the mouse port in Tanjung Buton, Sungai Apit District.

"Based on the investigation, they intend to return to the Philippines via air in Indonesia, they are workers on a Greek-flagged tanker but were dropped off at sea off the border between Batam and Singapore," said Head of the Class II Immigration Office of TPI, Siak Yanto, quoted by Antara, Thursday. , March 17th.

Yanto said the five Filipinos were initially caught by the COVID-19 Task Force in Sungai Apit District on January 19, 2022. At that time, officers asked them to show vaccine certificates but did not have them.

They only show a Filipino passport that does not have a permit or entry stamp to enter Indonesia. Therefore, the COVID-19 Task Force handed them over to the Immigration Office on January 28, 2022 after they underwent quarantine.

The five foreigners had the initials CDM, ETR, QJB, NEMM, and JPQ. They are on average 40 years old. When an investigation was carried out by Immigration officers, they admitted that they arrived at the Tanjung Buton People's port by boarding a rented speedboat.

But unfortunately, the Immigration did not find the speedboat they were using. "Because at that time we were not at the location. So, we didn't catch them directly. They were an overflow from the COVID-19 Task Force during the vaccine raid," he said.

Yanto said that the five foreigners were entangled in Article 113 of Law number 6 of 2011 concerning Immigration. It is stated that every person entering and leaving the territory of Indonesia without going through the Immigration Checkpoint will be sentenced to a maximum imprisonment of 1 year and/or a fine of Rp. 100 million.

The next process, he said, the five foreigners from the Philippines will be handed over to the Siak District Attorney for the sentencing process.

"After all their sentences have been served, they will be deported to their home countries," added Yanto.