Mail-order bride intercepted at NAIA

MANILA, Philippines — A Filipina lured into becoming a mail-order bride in China has been intercepted at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

Discrepancies in her fake marriage certificate led authorities to stop the 24-year-old trafficking victim and her traveling companion from boarding a Xiamen Airlines flight on July 15.

“The mail-order bride trap is rising again – all promises upfront, tricking women into fake marriages and exploiting them as domestic workers with little or no pay,” Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said.

The victim said she was traveling with her supposed brother to China to reunite with her husband, whom she recently married.

“The marriage certificate showed a visibly altered date. The marriage license was issued after the wedding, raising inconsistencies,” immigration officers said in a report.

After admitting that the documents are fake, the victim said she received P8,000 to cover the expenses she had shouldered.

Her recruiter had promised her a better life if she agreed to the arranged marriage.

Authorities have turned over the victim and her alleged brother to the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking for further investigation and assistance.