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Article

23 Jan 2024

Author:
Jay Hilotin, Gulf News (UAE)

Philippines: Govt. shuts Legal Connect Travel Consultancy over fraudulent job offers, as 7,000 scam posts removed from Facebook

See all tags Allegations

"Philippines: 7,000 scam job posts taken down from Facebook, how to report scammer,"

Up to 7,000 scam job posts in the Philippine were taken down from Facebook, an official said Tuesday.

The move was taken in cooperation with the local office of the social media giant.

Undersecretary Hans Leo Cacdac, the Officer-in-Charge of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) in the Philippines, told local media he has also shuttered a "consultancy services" office in Quezon City for perpetrating job scams and charging exorbitant fees for nonexistent overseas employment opportunities.

The said consultancy services agency was implicated in offering fraudulent jobs in Italy and Malta.

Cacdac spearheaded the closure of Legal Connect Travel Consultancy, also known as Legal Connect Travel Services, in collaboration with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Office of Senator Raffy Tulfo.

The operation followed a month-and-a-half-long surveillance period to validate three received complaints.

The complainants, now under DMW protection, disclosed making initial payments of Php85,000 ($1,512) each. According to Cacdac, the agency falsely promised jobs in Italy for agricultural workers and caregivers, charging applicants between Php250,000 to Php380,000 ($6,760).

Similarly, they offered supposed positions in Malta for hotel workers, demanding payments ranging from Php200,000 to Php250,000 ($4,447). Notably, illegal recruitment involving three or more victims is considered a large-scale syndicate, punishable by life imprisonment...