2 foreigners nabbed in Benguet home amid Pogo probe
BAGUIO CITY—Two foreign nationals were held on Saturday after they were found inside a home in an upscale subdivision in Tuba town, Benguet province, during a government operation meant to arrest a Chinese woman wanted in connection with a recently raided Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub in Bamban, Tarlac, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said on Sunday.
While the subject of the arrest warrant was not in the house, the raiding team instead arrested Chinese national Wang Keping, 35, and her Cambodian companion, Khuon Moeurn, 37, who were inside the raided house at a high-end neighborhood of the Pinewoods Golf and Country Club in Baguio’s neighboring town of Tuba.
The Tuba police confirmed the operation led by the BI.
“There was coordination in response to the request of the Bureau of Immigration and PAOCC (Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission),” according to a reply sent by the Tuba police to the Inquirer on Saturday.
But the police did not provide further details, saying the “Tuba municipal police station [only] provided area security.”
The BI, in a statement Sunday, said the two were arrested in a joint operation conducted by the bureau’s intelligence division in Cordillera and the PAOCC.
BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval told reporters they had “no official information” yet on who is the owner of the house.
Law enforcement agents acted on information from the PAOCC about presence in the house of a Chinese woman being sought in relation to the Pogo hub in Bamban town that was raided last March for alleged human trafficking, money laundering and other illegal activities.
However, upon arrival at the Tuba site, the woman was nowhere to be found and only Keping and Moeurn were seen in the vicinity.
Undocumented alien
It was later discovered that Moeurn was an undocumented and overstaying alien, and failed to present proper documents. Agents reported he was only able to present a photo of his supposed Cambodian passport, which had a visa that expired in August 2020.
Wang was found to have a working visa but she may be charged with violation of Philippine immigration laws for “harboring an illegal alien,” the BI release said, quoting Fortunato Manahan, the immigration office’s intelligence division chief in the Cordillera.
Both foreigners would be brought to Manila for temporary detention in the PAOCC’s facility while undergoing deportation proceedings.
BI has remained mum on the owner of the Pinewoods home. But photos posted by media outfits that joined the raid identified the house as allegedly a property of a prominent personality in the country. The Inquirer could not independently verify that detail at press time.
The property used to be frequented by “Chinese-looking” guests, who drew attention in the neighborhood because some of them rode motorcycles, according to a Pinewoods resident who spoke with a local lawyer on Sunday. The lawyer asked not to be identified in the report.
No to Pogo
Weeks earlier, rumors circulated regarding an offer to put up either a Pogo facility or a casino in Tuding, a barangay of Benguet’s Itogon town, which is also adjacent to Baguio, said Baguio City Councilor Jose Molintas.
In local television broadcasts last month, Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong directed the city police to check if Pogo entities have sprouted in the summer capital.
“Pagcor (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.) cannot license Pogo operations here without the approval of the local government,” he said in a June 21 telecast of the People’s Television’s Ilocano news broadcast.
The mayor also cited an incident three years ago when he was approached by a gaming proponent who used “a lot of bridges including a friend of mine” to open a Pogo in the city but Magalong said he rejected the offer.
“Baguio is a character city,” he pointed out, which means it advocates positive morals.
Baguio also banned casinos during its reconstruction after it was flattened by the July 16, 1990, Luzon earthquake.
