Philippine Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla says he is confident that all of the four Japanese nationals, who are allegedly linked to serial robberies in Japan, will be deported back home by the target date.

The four men are currently being held at an immigration control facility in the Philippines.

On Monday, Japanese police officials formally asked the Philippine authorities to hand the men over, based on the arrest warrants obtained for the suspected phone scams they conducted earlier in Japan.

Remulla said he talked with a Japanese Embassy official over the phone on Wednesday, and confirmed that they will aim at extraditing the four at one-time.

He said that he cannot indicate the date of the planned handover, but he is confident that the four men will be deported by the targeted date.

He stressed that final talks are underway, so that the transfer will be materialized by the time President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. visits Japan from next Wednesday.

Three of the four suspects are currently involved in judicial proceedings for different criminal cases in the Philippines. The country's justice department says it cannot hand them over to Japan unless legal proceedings for them are dismissed in the Philippines.

The department's spokesperson says a total of three court hearings are to be held regarding the cases on Thursday and Friday. All eyes are on what judgment the country's court will make.