Where is Cassie Ong? Lawyer says they haven't talked in a 'long time'

Lawyer Ferdinand Topacio, the legal counsel of Cassandra Li Ong, on Wednesday said he has not been in contact with her for a long time as authorities search for the at-large POGO firm representative. 

“Katulad po ng nasabi ko ay medyo may katagalan na rin pong walang kaming komunikasyon ng aking kliyente,” he said in an interview on Super Radyo dzBB when asked about her current whereabouts.

(As I’ve said, it’s been quite a while since we’ve had any communication with my client.)

Topacio added he could no longer remember when they last spoke.

He said that communication with Ong became “sporadic” following her release from the Correctional Institution for Women in December 2024.

“Minsan po may intermediary siya, na kaming kinakausap at kung mayroong mga developments ay tine-text namin siya sa last number niya at ito naman po ay sinusubukan naming i-relay sa kanya, tulad nung nagka-warrant po siya,” he said.

(Sometimes she communicates with us through an intermediary, and whenever there are developments, we text her at her last known number, and we try to relay the information to her, such as when a warrant was issued.)

Last week, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said that Ong, the authorized representative of the Lucky South 99 POGO firm in Porac, was no longer detained.

Ong has a warrant of arrest over qualified human trafficking charges.

Asked if he is still willing to represent Ong despite the lack of communication, Topacio said that he is duty-bound to do so until his service is terminated.

“In fact nga po, ‘yung ibang abugado ay kailangan pa humingi ng permiso ng korte para mag bitaw bilang abugado,” he said.

(In fact, some lawyers even need to seek the court’s permission in order to withdraw as counsel.)

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 Department of Justice has offered a P1 million reward for information that will lead to her discovery, location, and arrest.

"Basta kami naman ginagawa lang namin ang trabaho namin. Yung kaso naman ni Cassandra Ong at mga kapwa akusado niya sa Porac POGO ay matagal ng gumagalaw. At gagalaw at gagalaw ang kasong eto kahit ano pa ang ibang ganap dito sa bansa natin," said Depatment of Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Felix Ty in an interview on Balitanghali on Wednesday.

(We are just doing our job. The case of Cassandra Ong and her co-accused in the Porac POGO has been moving for a long time. And this case will move and move no matter what else happens in our country.) —Joahnna Lei Casilao/ VAL, GMA Integrated News