Erwida Maulia – Indonesia's immigration office said it will immediately investigate the alleged mistreatment of Hollywood actor Taylor Kitsch by an allegedly corrupt Indonesian customs officer as he tried to enter Indonesia to work on a movie shoot.
The Canadian actor, 30, told US "Late Show" host David Letterman about his encounter with airport customs officials.
In a clip of the interview on CBS.com, Kitsch described the unpleasant encounter with the customs officer who did not immediately allow him to enter Indonesia and asked for his iPhone as a bribe.
He said the customs officer would not allow him to enter because his passport pages were full, although Kitsch had a visa to work on Oliver Stone's film "Savages," also featuring John Travolta, Uma Thurman and Salma Hayek.
"You're out of pages so I can't stamp it, so you're gone," Kitsch quoted the officer as saying. "And I'm like, 'Hold on, I can work here; I've got the visa.' He didn't believe I was an actor, so I'm literally pitching myself to this guy," he added.
Kitsch said he showed the customs officer a trailer of "John Carter," in which he starred, on his iPhone. The official then asked about the iPhone, "Can you give me one of those?"
The officer finally allowed Kitsch to pass after Kitsch managed to convince him he was in the movie trailer.
Letterman said during the TV show that the unpleasant encounter with the corrupt customs officer had occurred in the Philippines and Kitsch did not correct him.
But, the Philippine Bureau of Customs commissioner Ruffy Biazon denied the claims, saying he had investigated them and found that the Philippine government had not given any permits for location shooting of "Savages."
Authorities had found no customs or immigration records of Kitsch's visit, Biazon said. "I feel confident that Mr. Kitsch was mistaken in saying that his bad experience during his travel was in the Philippines," he said in his report, published on the Web site of local television station ABS-CBN.
Biazon said he learned some scenes in the upcoming film were actually recently filmed in Indonesia, the Philippines' neighbor to the south. According to the Web site Balifilm.com, recent shooting for "Savages" took place over six days on the island of Moyo in Indonesia's West Nusa Tenggara province.
Indonesian immigration office spokesman Maryoto Hadi said he had not heard of the incident, but would soon investigate it.
"If an officer of ours abuses his authority and taints the image of the organization especially, we will surely take action against him, in accordance to the existing regulation," Maryoto told The Jakarta Globe in a phone interview. "We will surely investigate the truth behind this news," he added.
Kitsch is best known for his portrayal of American football star Tim Riggins in the television series "Friday Night Lights."