Philippine authorities have identified two loan shark syndicates targeting high rollers in Manila’s casinos following the rescue of a 48-year-old kidnapping victim on Tuesday.
A total of 45 suspects have now been arrested in two joint operations, including 14 men in the Parañaque City condominium where Singaporean Wu Yan was being held.
She had been playing at Solaire Resort & Casino in Manila’s Entertainment City late last week when she was kidnapped by three men and a woman and taken to the condominium located a kilometer away. A guard is said to have spotted her as she was trying to escape and contacted police, but not before she had spent four days in the room where she was forced to make a video asking family members to send US$180,000 for her release.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Police Chief Ronald de la Rosa said they had found two groups operating since 2015.
“These two groups are composed mostly of Chinese and Singaporean nationals of Chinese descent. They always target Chinese and Singaporean players,” he said.
Police later arrested the 45 suspects, which included 43 Chinese and two Malaysian nationals aged between 25 and 35. They each face a life sentence if found guilty.
Head of the Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) of the Philippine National Police, Senior Superintendent Glenn Dumlao, said that the syndicates would work in teams of four and wander the floor of Manila casinos looking for potential victims. Targeting tourists, they would then befriend players that appeared to be losing money and offer them a loan, charging 10% commission plus 10% on any winnings. If they subsequently lost, they would be offered a ride to another casino only to be kidnapped instead.
Among the group’s victims have been a Chinese national who paid a RMB300,000 ransom in June and a Hong Kong national who managed to escape earlier this month.
“I want to make it clear that we are not anti-gambling,” said Mr de la Rosa. “We are not against foreigners coming to the Philippines to gamble. But we are anti-criminals. We are especially against foreigners who will come here to commit crime. We do not tolerate that.”
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