NBI confirms 'hierarchy' in 'pastillas' group operations

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Tuesday supported the whistleblowers' claim that there was a hierarchical system in the alleged operation of the "pastillas" bribery scheme within the Bureau of Immigration, underscoring how systematic the operation was.

"Based po sa mga investigation natin, doon sa mga nakalap nating ebidensya, it seems na mayroon naman pong hierarchy talaga," NBI Special Action Unit chief Emetrio Dongallo Jr. said during the continuation of the Senate probe on the issue.

Immigration officers and whistleblowers Allison Chiong and Jeffrey Dale Ignacio both said there was a pyramid-like hierarchy among those involved in the illega scheme and former BI Port Operations Division chief Marc Red Mariñas was allegedly at the top of it.

Mariñas has denied knowledge about the allegation.

"Di ko po alam 'yan, your honor," he said during the hearing.

Under the scheme, Chinese high-rollers and offshore gaming workers were allegedly allowed to enter the country without going through the proper immigration process, as long as they paid grease money to BI personnel.

In a previous hearing, Ignacio also named other officials involved in the pastillas scheme: Fidel Mendoza, Mariñas' supposed right hand man; Erwin Ortanez, the overall head of the Travel Control and Enforcement Unit (TCEU) at NAIA; TCEU terminal heads Glennford Comia, Benlado Guevarra, and Denden Binsol; and their deputies Deon Carlo Albao, Arlan Mendoza, and Anthony Lopez.

A self-confessed member of the group, Ignacio said his financial problems forced him to join in 2017.

He lamented that "foot soldiers" like him, who earned P5,000 to P20,000 weekly or every two weeks through the "pastillas," were used as "shield" by those in charge from charges.

Ignacio was one of the 19 BI personnel whom the NBI accused of graft in a complaint filed before the Office of the Ombudsman.  —KBK, GMA News