Four convicted foreign sex offenders have been barred from entering the Philippines, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said on Monday, Nov. 10.
BI Commissioner Joel Anthony M. Viado identified the four foreigners as American nationals Julian Johnson, 56, and Charles White, 69; New Zealand national Stefan Andrew Alletson, 34; and Canadian national Leo Paul Houle, 77.
The BI said that Johnson was intercepted by immigration officers at the Clark International Airport (CIA) last Oct. 26 after arriving from Taiwan.
“Records show that Johnson was convicted in 1996 in the United States for lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 years old and was sentenced to one year of confinement and five years of probation,” it said.
Alletson, who was intercepted last Oct. 26 upon his arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) from Hong Kong, was found to be “a former football coach who was convicted in New Zealand for sending sexually explicit photographs to 14-year-old boys,” it also said.
Houle was denied entry at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) last Oct. 30 after immigration officers found “he was convicted in 2018 of child pornography-related offenses and conspiracy to commit a sexual offense against a person under 18 years of age,” it added
Last Nov. 4, the bureau said White was stopped from entering the Philippines following his arrival at the NAIA after it was discovered that he was convicted in 2007 for “a criminal sexual act in the third degree involving a 15-year-old victim.”
Viado said the four foreigners were placed in the BI’s blacklist which bans their entry to the Philippines.
“The Philippines will never be a safe haven for convicted predators,” declared Viado.
He also said that the bureau remains committed “to ensuring that those with a history of preying on minors are stopped at the gates, and this is part of our collective efforts to keep communities safe and uphold the integrity of our borders.”