Dozens of kidnap, other crimes linked to POGOs
THE Philippine National Police (PNP) has recorded 102 kidnapping cases and other crimes related to Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) from 2019 to Jan. 30, 2023.
In his report on Tuesday, January 31, before the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, MGen. Eliseo Cruz, PNP director for Investigation and Detective Management, said that many of the suspects and victims in the POGO-related crimes were Chinese.
Of the 102 crimes reported, 40 happened in 2022, 42 in 2021, 11 in 2020 and nine in 2019.
The report also indicated that there were 319 victims and one of them was killed.
Of the number of victims, 214 were Chinese, 28 were Filipinos, 28 Thais, 24 Burmese, and the others were Malaysians, Taiwanese, Vietnamese, Japanese and Mongolians.
There were 892 suspects composed of 782 Chinese, 80 Filipinos, and the others were identified as vietnamese, Malaysians, Koreans, Thais and Indonesians.
Of the 892 suspects, only 83 were arrested, 93 are at-large, 482 posted bails, three were killed and 231 were turned over to the Bureau of Immigration.
Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, chairman of the committee, said that the report will be part of the basis of the committee recommendation on whether or not to stop POGO operations in the country.
The senator was alarmed by reports that the Chinese syndicates engaged in POGO-related crimes own sophisticated guns.
This developed after Pasay City Police chief Col. Byron Tabernilla told the committee that the arrested three Chinese allegedly involved in kidnap for ransom are members of a Chinese syndicate operating in the country.
In a privilege speech on Dec. 14, 2022, Sen. Mary Grace Poe mentioned that a victim was initially offered a job as personal assistant but ended up being a victim of a kidnapfor-ransom syndicate.
THE VICTIM WAS LATER IDENTIfiED AS Ericson Dilag, a Malaysian.
Dela Rosa believes that the abductors are members of a wellorganized crime group because of the expensive guns recovered from them.