The Philippine National Police is reportedly stepping up monitoring of potential POGO hubs in Central Visayas following a weekend raid on an illegal operation in Cebu on Saturday.
The raid, which followed a request from the Indonesian Embassy to rescue eight of its nationals allegedly being held in an illegal POGO hub, ultimately saw more than 100 people arrested and 162 foreign nationals found working on the scam farm – comprising 83 Chinese, 70 Indonesian, 2 Taiwanese, 6 Burmese and a Malaysian, according to state-run Philippine News Agency.
The hub in question, located in in Lapu-Lapu City, was disguised as a resort with a restaurant, bar, mini-store and swimming pool.
Following the joint operation between the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC), National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas, Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking Central Visayas and the Bureau of Immigration, Police Regional Office-7 Director, Brig. Gen. Anthony Aberin has now instructed all police chiefs in Cebu province to increase monitoring of possible POGOs in their areas.
According to comments from Lawyer Renan Oliva, regional director of the National Bureau of Investigation in Region 7, it is believed that some of those involved had relocated from POGO hubs previously raided in Luzon.
She added that the Cebu hub had first been identified as having violated immigration laws, “but we discovered that they seemed to be involved in scams. So, we are processing each identity of the foreigners, including those who were rescued during the raid.”
The focus on the Philippine offshore gaming industry has intensified in recent months after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr announced a complete ban on the industry effective 1 January 2025. Under the ban no new Internet Gaming Licenses (IGLs) – previously known as POGOs – may be issued and all existing licensed must be wound back by the end of the year.
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