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DOJ junks trafficking raps vs POGO firm

January 25, 2023 Hector Lawas 205 views

THE Department of Justice (DOJ) has dismissed the human trafficking charges filed by the Philippine National Police-Women and Children Protection Center (PNP-WCPC) against a Pasay-based POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator).

In a statement, the POGO’s corporate counsel said a four-man panel of DOJ prosecutors found “no probable cause” on the firm’s involvement in the alleged trafficking of POGO workers.

The 13 private complainants were supposedly rescued in a private residence in Concorde Village, Paranaque City, by the PNP-WCPC in September last year.

The DOJ panel said the PNP’s claim that the workers were employees of the POGO firm and the two other companies that the PNP included in the charge sheet “was never substantiated.”

The panel also found no evidence that would lead to a determination that there was a conspiracy among the respondents and nothing on record that demonstrates any express agreement among them to commit a crime or to illegally traffic the complainants.

“Basic rule is that mere allegation is not evidence and is not equivalent to proof. Charges based on suspicion and speculation likewise cannot be given credence,” the panel stressed.

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