Manila, Feb. 19 -- The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has intercepted five victims before they could board their flight bound for Hong Kong at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3, Pasay City.

Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the victims --four males and one female-- were supposedly recruited via social media to work at scam hubs abroad operating in the guise of online gambling or call centers in Cambodia.

A report by the Immigration Protection and Border Enforcement Section (I-PROBES) said the individuals initially presented themselves as tourists bound for Hong Kong aboard a Cebu Pacific flight at NAIA on Feb. 15.

They all claimed to be working in popular restaurants or establishments in the Philippines, and enter...