Manila, June 17 -- The Bureau of Immigration (BI) denied entry to a United States national previously convicted of a sex-related crime involving a minor.

Matthew Stephen Gross, 36, was intercepted at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport on Monday upon his arrival from Taipei, the BI said in a news release on Tuesday.

BI Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said the foreigner was immediately sent back to his port of origin under immigration exclusion proceedings.

Viado said the exclusion is part of the BI's intensified efforts to protect vulnerable sectors, particularly children, under its flagship Shield Kids campaign.

"Protecting children from sexual predators is a moral obligation, not just a legal one. Foreign nationals with a history ...