Freeze order served vs bank accounts, properties of 2 alleged drug money launderers –PDEA

Authorities served a freeze order on the bank and credit accounts, insurance policies, real properties, and motor vehicles of two drug suspects, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said on Monday.

In a statement, the PDEA said the agency, Anti-Money Laundering Council, and the Bureau of Customs served the order against Julie Hao Gamboa, or Kimberly, and spouses Ruben and Teresita Taguba.

The freeze order covers 173 bank and credit accounts, insurance policies, 17 properties, and five motor vehicles.

Officials, led by PDEA Director General Wilkins Villanueva and AMLC Executive Director Atty. Mel Georgie B. Racela, posted freeze order notices on the suspects' two real properties in Quezon City.

These properties were worth around P70 million.

The actions taken were based on the May 27 freeze order issued by the 5th Division of the Court of Appeals on the suspects' assets.

According to the PDEA, Gamboa was among the cohorts of Xu Zhi Jian, or Jacky Co, who was linked to the importation of a P1.8 billion shabu shipment at a Manila port on March 22, 2019.

On May 31, 2019, PDEA filed a criminal complaint before the Department of Justice against Jian, a Chinese national, and 16 others for the importation of the shabu shipment.

The PDEA added that Gamboa was also among the cohorts of Jian in the smuggling of 276 kilograms of shabu in Manila.

In 2018, she was allegedly responsible for the illegal release of 105 containers from the Port of Manila.

Jian has no registered businesses and properties under his name but managed 70 bank accounts that transacted hundreds of millions of pesos from 2004 to 2019.

Some of these transactions were with entities that were the subject of separate drug-related civil forfeiture cases, the PDEA said.

Also, Gamboa has no registered business but has 81 bank accounts in different banks that transacted millions of pesos. She also has three properties and four registered motor vehicles, the PDEA added.

Meanwhile, Ruben Taguba was a former Customs Police Officer and father of Mark Taguba, who is the subject of a separate probe into the shipment of 602 kilos of shabu in Valenzuela City in May 2017.

Ruben has 21 properties registered under his name and made hundreds of millions of pesos worth of bank transactions using 21 different bank accounts, the anti-illegal drug agency said.

He was also found maintaining a joint account with Gamboa which received 108 fund transfers amounting to P51,142,157.71 from the latter’s personal account.

"The posting of preservation orders on the two properties sends a strong message to potential drug money launderers that despite the challenges brought about by the pandemic, the PDEA, AMLC and BOC continue to intensify efforts against personalities belonging to the upper echelon of the drug trade,” Villanueva said.

"We will be closely working together to track down the trail of drug money, arrest and forfeit the assets of drug money launderers,” he added. — DVM, GMA News