The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has deported the two remaining Japanese fugitives who were implicated in the controversial ‘Luffy’ case in Japan.
Meanwhile, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. clarified that the deportation of the four Japanese nationals tagged in the “Luffy” heists has already been processed prior to his scheduled visit to Japan
Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said Tomonobu Saito, 45, and Yuki Watanabe, 38, were deported Wednesday evening aboard a Japan Airlines flight to Tokyo. Tomonobu and Yuki were two of the four fugitives suspected by Japanese authorities to be members of a gang that committed a string of violent crimes in Tokyo.
Earlier, the BI deported Fujita Toshiya and Imamura Kiyoto who were linked to telephone fraud cases in Japan.
Tomonobu, also known as Kojima Tomonobu, and Yuki, who used the aliases Kenjie Watanabe and Kenjie Shimada, were both
arrested on April 19, 2021 in a hotel in Paranaque by a combined team from the BI’s intelligence Division and the National Bureau of Investigation.
Tomonobu was wanted in Japan, with a standing arrest warrant for theft. On the other hand, Yuki reportedly has an arrest warrant for counterfeiting and theft.
All four Japanese nationals were declared undesirable aliens due to their status as fugitives from the law.
“Yesterday we received confirmation that the local cases of the two remaining suspects have been dismissed by the courts. This means there is no more legal impediment for us to implement their deportation,” Tansingco said.
“We thank the Department of Justice (DOJ) for their continued assistance in expediting the resolution of the local cases of these deportees, so we can finally send them back home to face their crimes,” he stated.
Tansingco said that they will discuss with the DOJ actions that need to be taken to expedite local cases of foreign nationals, to be able to decongest the BI’s holding facility in Taguig City.
“Luffy has finally been deported,” Tansingco said. “We wish to also thank the Japanese government for their cooperation in our efforts to expedite their return,” he added.
As a consequence of their deportation, all four Japanese nationals have been included in the BI’s blacklist, effectively barring their return to the Philippines.
Interviewed by reporters on his way to Japan, the President said the deportation was a mere “coincidence.”
“Well, it was actually in the process already before the Japan trip was even planned,” Marcos said. “It was just by coincidence that it happened.”
Asked if the deportation was part of the Japanese government’s request or a form of the Philippine government’s goodwill, Marcos said the move was made following the appeal by the Japanese government.
Marcos also believed that the latest development would facilitate a smooth trip to Japan.
“Of course, it cannot hurt because it is a request. It was a request from the Japanese government and so we are always going to acquiesce to that request. We thought perhaps it would clear the decks as it were for the talks that we will have with the Japanese,” he said.
The Philippine government, Marcos said, “basically followed the same criteria as a[n] extradition.”
“Although hindi na natin ginawang extradition kasi ang request nila para mas mabilis mag-deport na lang (we did not pursue extradition process because that’s their request. We just deported it to expedite the process). So that’s precisely what we did,” Marcos said