New facility for foreign detainees opens

MANILA, Philippines — Justice Secretary yesterday led the inauguration of a new Bureau of Immigration (BI) facility for foreign nationals undergoing deportation proceedings.

The facility, located inside the New Bilibid Prison compound in Muntinlupa, will serve as the new holding area for foreign detainees

The BI said the newly turned-over facility can accommodate 450 foreign nationals.

“It will later be expanded to accommodate as much as 700 wards,” the BI said.

BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the new facility plays a critical role in the government’s intensified operations against illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators and foreign fugitives engaged in cyberfraud, trafficking and other transnational crimes.