It was virtually a scene plucked out of a movie: A middle-aged, penniless woman leaves her hometown and successfully flies off to distant foreign land without a passport and without paying her airfare.
In the case of Leah Castro Reginio, fact is indeed stranger than fiction.
Reginio, reportedly in her late 30’s and a native of Antique province, flew to Incheon International Airport, one of the largest and busiest airports in the world, from Kalibo International Airport, for free and without any travel documents via Philippine Airlines flight 490 that departed last Thursday afternoon.
All thanks to a sloppy security at one of the airports serving Boracay.
According to unimpeachable sources at the said airport, Reginio breezed through the labyrinth of what was supposed to be a tight airport security cordon from the entrance gate, the immigration and even at the boarding gate manned by airline ground personnel.
The sources exclusively informed Manila Bulletin that while on board the PAL flight bound for Seoul, Reginio was also served with inflight meals just like a regular passenger. While onboard the plane, she even requested the flight attendant to bring her a blanket.
SEOUL SECURITY
But when she landed at the Incheon International Airport, Reginio was seen loitering inside the primary airport serving the Seoul Capital Area. When questioned by Korean airport authorities, the Aklan-native failed to produce a passport or any travel document.
Immediately, she was escorted to board the return flight of PAL to Kalibo.
However, sources said PAL flight officers initially refused to board Reginio back to the Philippines when the latter was endorsed to them by Korean authorities, reportedly arguing that she was not listed in their passenger manifest.
This reportedly prompted the Korean airport officers to review the monitoring cameras which showed Reginio emerging out from PR 490 shortly after it landed in Incheon at around 845 p.m. (Korea time).
On her return flight, Reginio was again provided with inflight meals.
CAAP PROBE
As soon as the plane landed back in Kalibo, Reginio was turned over to Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) authorities where she was held for questioning.
During investigation, CAAP officials reportedly had a hard time extracting information from Reginio who was merely smiling and not answering a single question.
She subsequently admitted that she was able to enter the Kalibo airport and board the flight for free along with other passengers mostly Korean nationals who just came from their vacation in Boracay.
Boracay is a popular destination for Koreans specially during winter season, which necessitates PAL to fly daily between Kalibo and Incheon.
When asked the number of her children, Reginio’s reply further puzzled the investigators: “I have more than four and a half, but not less than three.”
This prompted the CAAP officials to trace her relatives in Antique who informed them that Reginio is suffering from schizophrenia, a mental disorder often characterized by abnormal social behavior and failure to recognize what is real.
“She was just smiling and laughing while she was being questioned,” an airport source said.
‘I’VE BEEN TO MANY PLACES’
Reginio told investigators that she has been dreaming of traveling to many places. She even claimed she has relatives working abroad.
At one instance, she claimed that she was able to take the “ro-ro” (roll on-roll off) without paying anything and that she was even checked by A ship steward and security.
It was later learned that CAAP released Reginio to a relative following intense questioning but without any charges being filed. This despite the glaring security breach and obvious lapses not just by PAL personnel but more so by airport authorities.
“This does not sit well with the worldwide effort to ensure the safety of airports and airline passengers from potential terrorist act,” the airport source said. “Heads should not only roll but a thorough review of the security procedure should be immediately put forward.”
Meanwhile,two people were not so lucky in their effort to illegally leave the country.
On Sunday, two people posed as employees of a fastfood outlet at the Ninoy Aquino International airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in a bid to get to Hong Kong.
However, they were caught by airport authorities and are now in the custody of the International Agency Council Against Trafficking.
Source: Manila Bulletin
Aviation News Philippines 