The Bureau of Immigration (BI) arrested a suspected impostor at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 on January 1 as part of the government’s efforts to strengthen border security.

According to BI, the passenger was identified as Nimo Ahmed Hassan, 21, a female holder of a Swedish passport. She was referred for secondary inspection after primary immigration officers noticed discrepancies while she was attempting to depart for Italy aboard a Qatar Airways flight.

Although the passport was confirmed to be authentic, Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said officers, aided by their training and biometric face-referencing technology, determined that the passenger was not the rightful owner of the document.

Further investigation showed that the suspect is an impostor believed to have originated from East Africa. Authorities are still working to establish her true identity and trace her actual travel documents.

The BI emphasized that its frontline officers uxndergo continuous training in fraud detection and identity verification, and that advanced face-referencing technologies are crucial in preventing illegal travel and transnational crimes.

Hassan was immediately arrested and brought to the BI’s holding facility, where she will remain while undergoing deportation proceedings.