‘Flawed’ Ermita raid the reason why whole-of-government’ approach needed to enforce PBBM’s order vs POGOs
I’M saying this in the wake of what has been described as a ‘flawed raid’ on a suspected illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator or POGO hub in Ermita, Manila located in a building allegedly owned by a wealthy Chinese businessman whose family is associated with former President Rodrigo Duterte
This as the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission or PAOCC chaired by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin issued a statement denying any involvement whatsoever with the raid at the Century Park Tower in Ermita.
“The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission was not part of the raid that was spearheaded by the PNP NCRPO and the PNP ACG. We were never consulted nor informed regarding this operation. We never release any foreign nationals caught in POGOs because all our operations are always properly coordinated with the DOJ IACAT and the Bureau of Immigration. Please do not associate PAOCC with flawed operations,” the PAOCC said in a November 2 statement.
“Moreover, we never said that the said raided POGO is the Mother of all POGOS. As aforementioned that we had nothing to do with this operation, thus we will not release any statement regarding its investigation. We call on all media outlets to take down any news item that associates PAOCC with the said flawed raid,” the PAOCC statement added.
The PAOCC issued the statement as it was reported that the Bureau of Immigration refused to take custody of at least 69 foreign nationals apprehended by agents of the PNP Anti-Cybercrime Group during the raid which ES Bersamin wants to be investigated.
On Tuesday night, PNP-ACG operatives, with the assistance of officers from the National Capital Region Police Office raided the building which housed a business-residential area on Adriatico Street in Manila’s Ermita district where an initial 75 foreigners and 47 Filipino workers were held for their alleged involvement in multi-million online scam and illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator or POGO activities.
The PNP-ACG headed by Major General Ronnie Francis M. Cariaga said officers armed with a Warrant to Search, Seize and Examinate Computer Data issued by a local court, stormed the target building which was found to be still operating despite being served a closure order by the government in November 2023.
The raid was conducted amid a complaint that the 23rd floor of the building is being used in online scams including ‘love scams and crypto-currency investment scams’ and amid suspicions that numerous dismantled POGO facilities nationwide have reportedly consolidated within the said high-rise building. \\
PAOCC officials said the building has become a magnet for illegal POGO activities, including those who came from dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo’s POGO hub, with multiple floors serving as makeshift offices for unregistered and unregulated operators.
Sources from the PAOCC said the operation led in the arrest of nearly 1,000 people including 69 foreign nationals allegedly involved in illegal activities and was the result of lengthy coordination between the PNP-ACG and the NCRPO headed by Maj. Gen. Sidney Hernia.
However, despite the successful police operation, sources so-called’ bureaucratic resistance’ and presence of purported ‘high-level connections and influential networks’ of illegal POGO hubs which have been ordered shut down by PBBM last July, really affected what could have been a major accomplishment by the government.
This happened as in an unexpected turn, the BI reportedly refused to take custody of the apprehended undocumented foreign nationals which include 35 Chinese nationals, 11 Indonesians and 10 Malaysians for proper processing and documentation.
The NCRPO had previously said that despite previous enforcement actions against this site, authorities discovered that illegal POGO operations were still ongoing in the area.
Maj. Gen. Hernia said their investigation revealed that the entire building was occupied by foreign nationals who were believed to be working without proper government permits. This prompted the PNP-ACG and the NCRPO to coordinate with local government units and the BI to inspect the building thoroughly.
