P1M reward offered for info on Cassie Ong's location

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is offering a P1-million reward for information on the location of Cassandra Li Ong, who is facing human trafficking charges, Justice Acting Secretary Fredderick Vida said Tuesday.

At a press briefing, Vida said the department is offering the reward for “credible, actionable information” that will lead to the discovery, location, and arrest of Ong.

“Batid naman po natin sa nakalipas ay may kakayanan sila. May kakayanan na umikot, gumalaw, at makalabas at pumasok ng Pilipinas nang hindi natutukoy,” the acting secretary said.

(We know that in the past they had the capability. They had the capability to move around, operate, and enter or exit the Philippines without being detected.)

The reward came after Senator Sherwin Gatchalian told a Senate panel that Ong has been released from detention from the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) in Mandaluyong City and was now "at large."

Vida admitted that the DOJ is having difficulty tracking Ong’s movement. He said they cannot conclude if Ong is still in the country or has left.

“Definitely with the current information that we have, we don’t have enough. That’s why we’re offering the reward. And it’s an effective tool,” he said.

The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission has said that Ong’s last location was tracked in Japan. It said that there is on information on her location after this.

Meanwhile, the Pasig Regional Trial Court has ordered the cancellation of the passports of Ong and former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque. 

In a video posted on his Facebook, Roque said the ruling is not yet final, and that he would file a motion for reconsideration. 

However, Justice Undersecretary Nicky Ty said the cancellation order is final and executory by the Department of Foreign Affairs.

"The offer of a one million peso reward for information on the whereabouts of Ms. Cassandra Li Ong by the DOJ is but the latest in a series of pathetic efforts by the present government to divert attention from the smouldering flood control scandal,” he told reporters. — RSJ/ VAL, GMA Integrated News