In a high-profile corruption case unfolding at one of the Dominican Republic’s busiest international air hubs, the country’s Public Prosecutor’s Office has formally requested pretrial preventive detention for a veteran migration inspector accused of extorting bribes from incoming foreign travelers.
The defendant, Albert Isaac Pérez Ferreras, has served as an entry/exit control inspector with the Dominican General Directorate of Migration since 2022. He was taken into custody on May 17 in flagrante delicto at Las Américas International Airport, following an alleged attempt to solicit a $200 bribe from a Spanish national and their travel companion in exchange for granting the pair entry into the country.
Investigative records detail that Pérez Ferreras falsely claimed the travelers planned to stay in the Dominican Republic for three months, a stay that would exceed the permitted duration under the country’s migration rules. The inspector claimed the $200 payment was a required immigration penalty for the overstay. The Spanish travelers pushed back on the demand immediately, noting they had entered the country on previous occasions without being charged any similar fees.
When the Spanish visitor explained he only carried $70 in cash, the accused inspector agreed to accept the reduced sum and told the traveler to tuck the banknotes inside his passport for the hidden exchange. Authorities confirmed that the entire interaction, including the handoff of the money, was captured on the airport’s closed-circuit television surveillance system, providing concrete audiovisual evidence for the case.
The request for coercive pretrial measures was submitted to the Santo Domingo East Coordinating Office of the Courts of Instruction by a team of senior anti-corruption prosecutors, led by Mirna Ortiz, head of the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office for the Prosecution of Administrative Corruption (Pepca). Ortiz was joined on the filing by fellow prosecutors Yoneivy González, Ernesto Guzmán Alberto, and Elizabeth Paredes Ramírez.
Public prosecution officials confirmed the case was originally referred for investigation by the General Directorate of Migration itself. As a public servant tasked with migration control, Pérez Ferreras was explicitly required to carry out his passenger oversight duties in strict adherence to core public service standards of legality, transparency, and ethical conduct.
Prosecutors note that the case against the inspector is built on a robust body of evidence, including documented records, witness testimony, the surveillance footage provided by migration authorities, and physical evidence recovered during the arrest. Pérez Ferreras faces formal charges for violating Article 146 of the Dominican Constitution, as well as multiple sections of the country’s Penal Code that address public corruption and bribery offenses.
As the legal process moves forward, authorities confirmed that the broader investigation into the incident is still ongoing, with no further details released on potential additional co-conspirators or related offenses at this stage.