Two more fugitive Japanese nationals were deported to Japan late Wednesday night, Feb. 8.
Tomonobu Saito and Yuki Watanabe left on board Japan Airlines Flight 078.
“We’re happy that tonight we finally finished the deportation of the four fugitives,” said Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic F. Clavano IV said during a press conference held at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
Last Tuesday, Feb. 7, Imamura Kiyoto and Fujita Toshita were deported.
The Japanese government had sought the deportation of its four nationals who, it said, are members of a criminal organization operating in Japan.
The four Japanese, one of them believed “Luffy,” the leader of the syndicate, had been in the custody of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) but could not be deported because of the pending criminal cases in Philippine courts.
Clavano admitted to journalists he does not know who “Luffy” is among the four deported Japanese nationals.
“So he could be one of the four. It’s possible also he is not even one of the four. We need the Japanese government to be the one to identify who ‘Luffy’ is,” he said.
He noted that the actions taken by the Philippine government on the request of the Japanese government is “a sign of commitment that we will cooperate with you in matters of common concern and interest.”
“The Japanese government mentioned that there may be other cases. But as of right now none have been referred to us officially. So, we will just have to wait,” he noted.
At the same time, Clavano said the deportation of the four Japanese fugitives is a learning experience for the Philippine government.
“I believe this will pave the way for some reforms and that there is much work to be done,” he said.
The deportation of the four Japanese fugitives was facilitated with the dismissal of the criminal cases filed against them in courts.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla had said that the charges filed against the fugitives were “contrived” to prevent their deportation.
Clavano said the Department of Justice will help Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco in the conduct of inventory of about 300 foreigners who are detained at the BI facility in Taguig City.
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