Kota Kinabalu: Filipinos still manage to sneak out of Sabah via the “back door” despite tightened  security at the sea border, according to Zamboanga City Mayor Ma Isabelle Climaco-Salazar.

She said this after Zamboanga police filed charges on Thursday against a couple with a travel history from Sabah to Tawi-Tawi, for falsifying information and refusal to cooperate with authorities amid the coronavirus pandemic and threat of a new virus strain.

“This shows that it is still possible for Filipinos  from Sabah to go home using  the ‘back door’ route despite tight security measures imposed by both Philippines and Malaysia,” city officials said.

The couple was identified as Jay Christopher Tabat and his wife, Mary Gail Amante, both residents of Kainaiyahan, Purok 14, Barangay Sinunuc.