Cassy Ong denies being a dummy; names ‘big boss’ of raided POGO

Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers on Wednesday night said Katherine Cassandra Li Ong could be working as a “dummy” for the owner of the Lucky South 99, the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub raided in Porac, Pampanga, and Whirlwind Corp.

Ong denied she is fronting for the firm’s owner and instead named a certain “Mr. Cheng” as the “big boss” of Lucky South.

During the fourth hearing of the House quad committee, said it was obvious that Ong was a dummy, since she was in-charge of issuing large checks, paid the $500,000 arrears of Lucky South to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor), and owned 58 percent of Whirlwind Corporation.

“Many of us think you are just used as a dummy. You are the dummy of the people behind these POGOs. The next question is, ikaw ba alam mo na iligal yung mga ginagawa o hindi? Kaya nga binibigyan ka namin ng pagkakataon na sabihin na ginamit ka, na dummy ka lang (Do you know that what you are doing is illegal or not? That is why we are giving you a chance to say that you were used, that you are just a dummy),” Barbers asked Ong, who replied, “Sa lahat ng question na po, hindi po ako dummy (To all your questions, I’m not a dummy).”

Ong also refused to answer Sta. Rosa Rep. Dan Fernandez, one of the quad comm’s chairmen, who asked how much she earned as an incorporator of Whirlwind Corp. and if she submitted income tax returns.

“You’re handling so much money and you don’t have a simple income tax return. You should just tell the truth here because we are the only ones who can help you out here,” Fernandez said.

Later on, Ong was brought to St. Luke’s Medical Center in Quezon City due to low blood pressure, which according to the House’s medical team, dropped to 80/40.

Ong maintained she is not an incorporator of Lucky South but named Mr. Cheng as the firm’s owner.

She vowed to give Barbers, the lead chair of the four House panels looking into the proliferation of POGOs under the Duterte administration, Cheng’s full details once she gets in contact with her associates.

While she has admitted working for Lucky South in the previous hearings, Ong insisted that she was just a shareholder in Whirlwind Corp.,