Aussie tradie detained in the Philippines for overstaying his visa

Aussie tradie detained in the Philippines for overstaying his visa

An Aussie traveller has been detained in squalid conditions in the Philippines for the past five weeks after overstaying his visa.

Jacob Johns Dwyer sent video footage to 7News of the conditions he has been living in during his ordeal, claiming he has not been able to leave his cell or even eat unless he bribes guards.

“You have to buy your own food, you have to sort of pay the guards to do it for you,” he said.

The 31-year-old bricklayer from Perth was put in jail for overstaying his visa by seven months after meeting a woman in the country.

Dwyer told 7News he had gone to the Philippines for dental surgery “but I met a girl”.

“They keep us confined in the cell unless you, like, bribe them,” he said.

“There’s no recreation, nothing like that.”

Dwyer was detained at Zamboanga Airport, which is in an area the Australian government advises travellers to avoid.

He said he has hired a lawyer and hopes to be home before Christmas.

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