"A team from the Police Headquarters has departed for the Philippines to investigate the possibility of fraud," the Police chief stated.
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The police force is conducting further investigation into the case of 177 Indonesian Hajj pilgrims caught with fake passports that led to their detention in the Philippines, according to National Police Chief General Tito Karnavian.

"A team from the Police Headquarters has departed for the Philippines to investigate the possibility of fraud," the Police chief stated at the Coordinating Ministry for Legal, Political and Human Rights Affairs offices in Jakarta, Friday.

The general vowed to reveal the results of the investigation to the public once he receives a confirmation on the person responsible for sending 177 Indonesians for pilgrimage using Filipino passports.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Citizen Protection Directorate General of the Foreign Ministry Lalu Muhammad Iqbal remarked that 138 out of the total Indonesians detained at the Camp Bagong Diwa detention center in Taguig City have been relocated to the Indonesian Embassy in Manila.

The relocation was carried out after the Embassy urged the Philippines Justice Ministry to grant permission to move the Indonesians to the Embassys offices that have more facilities.

Some 138 Indonesians were moved to the Embassy grounds after the office released a letter of guarantee on Thursday, while the rest are scheduled to be shifted today.

Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin said the government will continue to make efforts to bring home the 177 Hajj pilgrims who became victims of fraud, conducted by irresponsible individuals who offered Hajj pilgrimage services without relying on the national quota given by the government.

"This is a clear case of fraud where 177 Indonesians were lured into going for Hajj pilgrimage using illegal passports as they were unaware of the consequences," Saifuddin noted during a working visit to Pontianak, West Kalimantan, on Tuesday.(*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
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