NBI nabs 79 Chinese in Bulacan factory raid

MANILA, Philippines —  The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) apprehended at least 79 Chinese nationals in a raid on a factory in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan yesterday.

NBI Director Jaime Santiago told The STAR that at least 36 of them were undocumented, while 23 had tourist visas.

Santiago did not disclose other details of the operation.

The 79 Chinese were brought to the NBI headquarters in Quezon City for further investigation.

Over the past months, authorities have stepped up operations against Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) amid reports of their involvement in illegal activities including human trafficking, torture, kidnapping and online scamming.

Last March 13, authorities raided a POGO hub in Bamban, Tarlac on complaints of human trafficking. At least 875 people, 504 of them foreigners, were rescued.

The POGO was linked to Bamban Mayor Alice Guo.

Authorities said those rounded up included 432 Chinese, 57 Vietnamese, eight Malaysians,
 three Taiwanese, two Indonesians and two citizens of Rwanda.

According to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC), 165 Chinese workers from Zun Yuan Technology Inc. have been deported to Pudong District in Shanghai, China.

On June 5, law enforcers raided the POGO hub of Lucky South 99 Corp. in Porac, Pampanga, where 158 foreigners were rescued including Chinese, Malaysian, Burmese and Vietnamese citizens, some of whom were torture and kidnap victims.

In a follow-up operation on June 27, PAOCC agents raided five villas in Fontana Leisure Parks in Clark, Pampanga, arresting three Chinese nationals believed linked to the Porac POGO.

On July 13, law enforcement agents raided another POGO hub in Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro and arrested its owner, a Chinese national named Stefan Cheng.

Armed with a search warrant, authorities swooped down on Puerto Galera Seaview Resort in Barangay Sinandingan where they found around 40 Chinese as well as gambling equipment and paraphernalia.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) – considered as the country’s largest business organization – added its voice to more groups expressing support for a gradual phaseout of POGOs as a sudden closure