Pampanga police chief relieved from post following Porac POGO hub raid

The provincial police chief of Pampanga has been relieved from his post following the recent raid on a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub in Porac, Pampanga.

According to Carlo Mateo’s report in SuperRadyo dzBB, Police Regional Office 3 director Police Brigadier General Jose Hidalgo confirmed that Police Colonel Levi Hope Basilio was relieved from duty to give way to the investigation on the raided POGO hub.

Hidalgo said that Basilio was relieved from post on Monday, June 10. 

This development came after the Porac Police chief was suspended also in relation to the raid on the 10-hectare facility in his jurisdiction

During the raid, more than 150 foreigners were rescued including Chinese, Malaysian, Burmese, and Vietnamese citizens. Some of those who were rescued were torture and kidnap victims. 

The continued search on the POGO hub also led to the discovery of alleged uniforms of the Chinese military. But the Armed Forces of the Philippines said that these could have been used only as props for online scams. 

Meanwhile, several senators called for the total ban of POGOs in the country following the recent raids on various POGO hubs. A bill seeking to ban POGO in the Philippines was also filed at the House of Representatives Tuesday.—Vince Angelo Ferreras/AOL, GMA Integrated News