10 Chinese nabbed in suspected illegal POGO in Clark, Pampanga

Authorities arrested 10 Chinese citizens who were allegedly engaged in illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operation (POGO) in Clark, Pampanga.

In Saleema Refran’s exclusive 24 Oras report on Tuesday, the Philippine National Police - Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) served seven search warrants in different villas, townhouses, and units inside an exclusive community inside the Clark Freeport and Special Economic Zone.

Authorities seized computers, gadgets, cellphones and safety vaults believed to have been used in the illegal POGO operation.

The arrested Chinese citizens will be turned over to the Bureau of Immigration (BI) for profiling and verification.

They have yet to release a statement on the matter.

Meanwhile, the BI arrested another Chinese man in Tuba, Benguet over the weekend.

The Chinese suspect is wanted for massive fraud in China.

Authorities said the man has an INTERPOL red notice for scamming almost twelve thousand people,  stealing 7 billion yuan or P56 billion in China.

Aside from being the alleged brain of scamming activities in POGOs in the country, the Chinese man was also caught using a fake Cambodian passport.

“Siya kasi yung kino-consider namin na pinaka-brain nung POGO operation, yung scamming operation dito sa Pilipinas. Hindi lang isang POGO hub ang sineserbisyohan nito. Siya kasi consultant siya ng maraming, ng iba't ibang mga Pogo hubs,” Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) Undersecretary Gilbert Cruz said.

(We considered him the brain of the POGO operation, the scamming operation here in the Philippines. He is not only providing services in one POGO hub because he is the consultant of many POGOs.)

The Chinese man is under BI and PAOCC custody while undergoing investigation.—Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF, GMA Integrated News