Addy Pacheco talks missing passports

Posted: Friday, June 30, 2017. 2:54 p.m. CST.

By BBN Staff: Senior Immigration Officer, Addy Pacheco, had another round of testimonies at the Senate inquiry this week, answering questions about hundreds of missing passports cited in the Auditor General’s Report.Senator Mark Lizaraga led the way in the questions, pointing out that over 600 passports were reported missing, stolen, or were simply unaccounted for. Lizaraga added that many of those passports re-entered into the system for renewal, at later dates.

Pacheco responded by saying that there was nothing she could do about the ‘re-entries’, because she didn’t know they went missing in the first place. She explained that the department was not keeping proper records on the missing passports.

“What they could have done when the electronic system came into effect, they could have entered all of this information in there, so that people could be on the lookout for them,” Pacheco said.

She added that without prior notification, no officer could be expected to know that a stolen passport was being renewed.

Pacheco, whose name came up numerous times in the Auditor General’s Report, testified that she was being intimidated by government ministers into cooperating with illegal practices happening at the department.