‘Pacman’ offers to help victims of bullet scam

Overseas Filipino workers flush with cash heading home are among the most targeted in the so-called “bullet scam” scam by Manila airport security employees.
The "bullet scam" or the "laglag bala" [dropping bullet into a bag] or "tanim bala" [planting bullet into a bag] extortion scheme sees bullets dropped into the luggage of passengers as they go through security at the country's main airport.
Passengers are then required to pay a fine or face being charged with illegal possession of ammunition.
In one of the reported cases wheelchair-bound Rhed de Guzman was easy prey as she struggled with three suitcases amid chaotic crowds in Manila's international airport.
The first she knew she was the target of the Great Bullet Scam was when airport staff were feigning alarm after her suitcases passed through a security check as she was making her way to a departure lounge to catch her flight to the US.
Security staff confronted her, holding a .22-calibre bullet, claiming it had been found in one of her suitcases.
Ms de Guzman was horrified, protesting that the bullet was not hers and she didn't even know where bullets could be obtained, reported the Sydney Morning Herald.
Staff playing the "bad cop" role told her to she was heading to a Manila jail and not the US and disappeared with her travel documents.
But the "good cop" guy wasn't away long.
"Ma'am, that's OK, for 500 pesos ($15), please hand it to me secretly as my supervisor may catch me," he said.
Ms de Guzman said she was terrified but wasn't going to be scammed, and posted the incident on Facebook on September 18.
Even though two airport staff were subsequently sacked, a racket where airport staff plant bullets in the luggage of passengers and extort money from them has flourished since then, prompting a public outcry, and forcing Philippine president Benigno Aquino to order an investigation at the weekend.
Among a growing number of people who refused to pay up was American missionary Lane White, who spent six days in jail before he was released, only after paying a fine.
In another incident, a 65-year-old grandmother departing for Singapore morning was accosted after a bullet was allegedly found inside her carry-on bag.
According to Philippine media, overseas Filipino workers flush with cash and desperate to be reunited with their families are the most targeted, including maids returning from Hong Kong.
The number of victims is unknown as most victims pay up but there have been six recorded cases in recent days.
Scams have been reported for years at Manila airport, which in 2012 and 2013 was rated the world's worst airport by users of a travel website.
In a past scam, airport security staff would sell a police badge to departing passengers.
When the badge was discovered during the final baggage screening, security staff would pounce, accusing the passenger of being in possession of stolen police identification, a very serious crime in the Philippines.
Malacañang has vowed to stop bullet-planting scam, with President Aquino ordering an investigation.
Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said both Aquino and Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya had instructed airport authorities to look into the report.
“What is happening right now is lamentable,” Lacierda told radio station dzRB .
Abaya said additional closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras were placed inside the airport premises to better monitor the situation.
Lacierda said the public must also be more mindful of their suitcases. 
“We should make sure that we pack our belongings...(to) rule out any proof that the passenger is responsible (for existence of bullets if ever),” Lacierda said.
Perpetrators of the scam reportedly work by extracting a bullet or two, which they themselves planted, from the passengers’ luggage and then subject them to various intimidations to force them to pay up.
He stressed carrying other people’s belongings must also be avoided.
A syndicate working in NAIA is allegedly behind this scam and Lacierda said they were seriously looking into this allegation.
Lacierda also said he understood why some passengers were apparently getting paranoid over this incident but he assured them that authorities were working to address the situation.
“We’re looking at the process. We’re looking at how it happened. We’re looking at the personnel involved... We want to take away that fear from them. We will ensure the safety of each and every passenger who uses our terminals,” he said.
Lacierda also said he would inform Abaya and Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) general manager Jose Angel Honrado of other concerns such as the reported cartel of taxis outside the airports and the one involving foreigners caught sneaking illegal drugs.
Meanwhile, boxing superstar and Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao is up in arms over the growing number of “laglag-bala or tanim-bala (bullet-planting)” incidents at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
“Mariin kong kinokondena ang nangyayaring laglag-bala extortion racket (I strongly condemn the laglag-bala extortion racket),” Pacquiao said in a statement, referring to allegations of bullet-planting on arriving and departing overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
Pacquiao, vice chairman of the House committee on overseas workers affairs (OWA), said the incidents have caused embarrassment for the country in the international community.
“These activities are destroying the image of the country and the reputation of innocent victims,” he said.
The boxer-turned-politician offered his help to victims of the extortion racket, saying he has assigned a team of lawyers to render free legal assistance. 
They could also text or call lawyer Jojo Bondoc at 0920-9211162, he said.