DOJ forms tracker team for missing Chinese suspect in POGO raid

The Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Thursday that a tracker team has been formed to search for the missing Chinese national allegedly involved in the operations of a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) in Pasay City.

“Kahapon po nakakuha po kami ng report na allegedly may nawawalang isang Chinese na national doon sa Pasay raid site sa Rivendell,” DOJ spokesperson Mico Clavano said in an ambush interview.

(We received a report yesterday that there is allegedly a missing Chinese national from the Pasay raid site in Rivendell.)

Clavano said the tracker team will include members of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Bureau of Immigration’s Fugitive Search Unit (FSU).

“Ang sa amin lang, ginagawa namin lahat para makuha ulit siya,” he said.

(We are doing everything to get him back.)

The spokesperson said the individual was among the 27 individuals who were recommended to be charged for violation of the Cybercrime Prevention Act.

Clavano said that the Chinese national was detained at the POGO facility in Pasay.

“So hindi po talaga namin gamay lahat ng exit at entry points. Marami pong bintana, marami pong emergency exit doors na, well, inano na namin, may guard na doon, pero hindi pa rin namin gamay kagaya nung pagkamagay nung mga scammers na empleyado po ng operation,” he said.

(We're not very familiar with all the exit and entry points. There are many windows and emergency doors that, well, we have put guards there, but we don’t know them as well as the scammers do.)

He said they must look into who is guarding the room of the said employee as members of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission, the Philippine National Police, the NBI, and FSU were present.

According to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, the missing Chinese national is allegedly a "VIP." 

"We’re investigating kung sino nagpakawala, paano nakawala, and under what circumstances. Yun ang problema namin ngayon that we don’t have the necessary facilities to really keep people in and the necessary personnel to keep people in," Remulla said.

(We’re investigating who released him, how he was released, and under what circumstances. That is our problem. We don’t have the necessary facilities to really keep people in and the necessary people to keep people in.)

He said they are eyeing transferring some of the suspects to facilities under the government.

"Basta may warrant na, may commitment order na nililipat na namin. Kasi yun talaga yung ano, yun ang may pondo para magpakain ng tao at mag house ng tao," he said.

(As long as there is a warrant or a commitment order already, we will transfer them because those facilities have the funds to feed and house people.) 

In Saleema Refran’s report on Saksi, the lawyer of the Chinese national is also looking for her client.

“They informed me wala na sa custody nila yung isa where in fact, supposed to be dapat naka-detain pa,” Atty. Gloria Quintos said.

Quintos said she could not confirm whether his client had escaped. —VAL/VBL, GMA Integrated News