NBI-7 files charges vs 16 foreigners nabbed in Lapu Pogo hub

The 169 foreign nationals, who were allegedly working in an illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (Pogo) hub in Lapu-Lapu City, were taken to the Mactan Airbase on Wednesday, September 4, and transported to Manila. | CDN Digital photo/ Emmariel Ares

CEBU CITY, Philippines – The National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) has filed charges for qualified trafficking in person against the 16 foreign nationals who were apprehended in a hotel in Brgy. Agus, Lapu-Lapu City believed to be a Pogo hub.

The 16 foreign nationals were accused of recruiting more than a hundred foreigners to come to the Philippines, tricking them to work in internet-based scams.

Those charged were Chinese nationals Zhao, Shao Qi alias “Lao Fan;” Yang, Teng Da; Ke, Rong Mou alias “Jordan;” Ji, Hui alias “Xiao Xi;” Hu, Yonghong; Dai, Chun Lin; Zhong, Donglin alias “Edison;” Luo, Peng alias “Alang;” Ma, Yi; Shen, Wen Xia alias “Xi Xi;” Zhuang, Jian Guo alias “Wang Fang;” and Wen, Qi Zhen.

READ: Cebu hotel raid uncovers first illegal Pogo hub in Visayas; 162 foreigners rescued

Also charged were Indonesian nationals Lona, Halim “Grace” and Joni alias “Gio” and Burmese national San, Thwe Thwe.

Accessory to the crime

NBI-7 also charged Filipino Zandrew Magdaluyo Cantarona for being an accessory to the crime.

Cantarona, who is said to be working for one of the recruiters, allegedly arrived at the Pogo hub on a motorcycle on Tuesday afternoon, carrying the passports of 51 of the rescued Indonesian nationals.

READ: Mayor Chan shuts down Lapu-Lapu hotel over illegal Pogo operation

Those charged were subjected to an inquest proceeding on Tuesday. 

Lawyer Renan Oliva, the NBI-7 director, said they will also be filing a complaint against another Filipino, a hotel worker, who allegedly tried to sneak out a box, rice, and cooking oil.

Oliva told reporters that the box also contained bundles of cash amounting to P8 million believed to be proceeds of their criminal activities.

READ: PAOCC saves 6 trafficking victims; nabs 162 others in Lapu-Lapu

The worker will be facing charges for conspiracy to commit qualified trafficking in persons, he added.

Witnesses

Meanwhile, the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) said that five Filipinos, who are from Pampanga and were earlier identified as operators of a Pogo hub there, will serve as witnesses in the charges that they filed against the 16 foreign nationals.

PAOCC disclosed that the charged foreign nationals, along with five Filipino managers, escaped from the Pogo hub in Pampanga that was shut down last June 5.

READ: Cebu closely monitoring possibility of Pogo activities in the province

The Filipino witnesses also identified the 16 foreign nationals as the alleged recruiters.

Internet-based scam

Last Saturday, August 31, authorities raided the Tourist Garden Hotel in Lapu-Lapu City in search of eight illegally-detained Indonesians based on the request of the Indonesian embassy.

Three Indonesians, who escaped last July, hinted of the location of the illegally detained foreign nationals.

According to NBI-7, the three Indonesians gave them two locations in Lapu-Lapu City and Mandaue City.

Upon their arrival at the Tourist Garden Hotel, law enforcers found a total of 169 foreign nationals who were allegedly involved in internet-based scams operated at the Pogo hub.  This included 93 Chinese, 69 Indonesians, six Burmese, and one Malaysian national.

Oliva disclosed that the Bureau of Immigration (BI) has also filed charges against the 169 rescued foreigners for being undocumented and for working in the Philippines without a visa.

In addition, operatives found out that some of them acted as the recruiters for the illegal business through their testimonies. 

Oliva said that the 16 foreign nationals, who were charged for qualified trafficking, were the ones who recruited the other foreign nationals to come to the Philippines.  

However, when they arrived here, their passports were taken and the salaries promised to them were not paid in full.

Transported to Manila

On Wednesday or three days after alleged Pogo hub in Lapu-Lapu City was raided, the arrested and rescued foreign nationals were transported to Manila.

They boarded a C-130 turboprop military aircraft at the Benito Ebuen Air Base on Wednesday afternoon.

Upon their arrival in Manila, the rescued foreign nationals will be taken to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) office in Pasay City for detention before they will be subjected to deportation proceedings.

The 16 others, who were charged by NBI-7, will remain in Manila to face their charges in court prior to their deportation.

On the other hand, the locals who were arrested by law enforcers, remained in the custody of NBI-7.

Case build-up

Meanwhile, NBI-7 said that they will continue to conduct a case-buildup for the possible filing of money laundering charges against the arrested suspects. 

They will also seek the issuance of a search warrant to inspect the computers, laptops, and mobile phones that were confiscated during the hotel raid.

After the gadgets are subjected to forensic examination, operatives will be able to determine the extent of their illegal activities and the identity of their victims.

Police Colonel Arnel Banzon of the Police Regional Office 7 (PRO-7) also disclosed that they are working with the PAOCC to make sure that there are no other Pogo hubs in the region.

Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan, for his part, has closed down Tourist Garden Hotel on Monday after he issued a cease and desist order.

Chan also said that city government was unaware of the Pogo operations at the hotel.