Chinese company denies being an illegal gambling operator

Some of the Chinese national arrested undergo inquest proceeding at the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Central Visayas (CIDG-7) office on Tuesday, September 10, 2019. | CDN file

CEBU CITY, Philippinesp—The Chinese company, Xin Huang Jin Chen Co., Ltd., Inc. (XHJC) denied that its operations in Lapu-Lapu City in Mactan Island, Cebu, was in any form illegal.

In a statement released to the media on Thursday, September 11, 2019, the company said it was certified by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) as a Costumer Relations Service Provider with a permit to last until May 20, 2022, released by the Offshore Gaming Licensing Department.

Read more: CIDG-7 busts illegal offshore gambling operation in Lapu-lapu City; nabs over 200 foreign workers

“PAGCOR Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andrea Domingo, certifies that all the operations at Tower One, Plaza Magellan, The Mactan Newtown in Lapu-Lapu City are accredited and can perform and provide services to its Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO),” said Laywer Jeff David, the in-house legal counsel of XHJC.

The company “vehemently” denies that they violated any law against gambling and that the raid of the Philippine National Police- Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) on  September 7, 2019 was “unreasonable.”

Read more: Foreign nationals nabbed for offshore online gambling crowd CCPO compound

David said that the 200 Chinese workers were not treated properly since many were arrested on the presumption that they were engaged in illicit acts, “even when they were in fact not within the area to be searched.”

“We abhor and protest the blatant targeting of our Chinese employees, for the simple fact that they cannot fully defend their rights considering the difficulty in speaking the English language,” said David.

The company also claimed that the raid was caused by their refusal to the give in to pressure and the demands of allegedly corrupt officers.

Read more: CIDG-7 not yet investigating owner of building that housed busted offshore online gambling firm

“XHJC, Inc. is a pillar of the community in Mactan. As a testament to this fact, the local government has repeatedly recognized the contributions of XHJC, Inc. to the community, from assistance related to small construction works to gift-giving, and it did not deserve to be treated in the manner of how the PNP-CIDG treated it and its workers last Saturday, September 7, 2019,” David added.

At least 200 of the employees of the company, including Chinese, Thai, and Korean nationals, are under the custody of CIDG as investigation on the case continues.

The CIDG conducted an eight-month surveillance on the company prior to the raid.

The CIDG said the company was not accredited to operate an offshore gambling operation. 

Meanwhile, Police Brigadier General Debold Sinas, the director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas, said that if the Chinese company in Lapu-Lapu City claim they have a permit for offshore gambling, they have to show it to the prosecutor.

Watch his interview here: 

https://www.facebook.com/cdndigital/videos/2390624557688655/

Police Colonel Lito Patay, the head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7), also said that the raid of the Chinese company allegedly operating illegally was done in line with the mandate of President Rodrigo Duterte to apprehend illegal gambling sites in the country. 

Here’s part of his interview:

https://www.facebook.com/cdndigital/videos/775345152917898/

/bmjo