More suspected spies nabbed in Subic raid
Authorities have arrested six foreigners and two Filipinos in an alleged illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) whom they suspect were also engaged in espionage while working on a resort island in Subic Bay that has a “strategic vantage point” to key sea lanes in the West Philippine Sea, including Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal).
A joint team from the Armed Forces of the Philippines, National Bureau of Investigation and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) on Wednesday raided Grande Island and arrested five Chinese, a Cambodian and two locals, according to the Department of National Defense (DND).
“The arrest exposes the unlawful nature, including suspected espionage and kidnapping activities related to Pogo, for which some foreign nationals are using Grande Island under the guise of private enterprises,” the DND said in a statement on Thursday.
“Such activities, which may be part of larger criminal network operations, pose a serious threat to our national security,” it added.
Qiu Feng, whose real name is Ye Tianwu (also known as Qing Feng), was arrested on a warrant for violating Republic Act (RA) No. 8799, or the Securities Regulation Code, and RA 10175, or Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
Four other Chinese—Xu Xining, Ye Xiaocan, Su Anlong, He Peng—along with Cambodian Ang Deck/Dic, and Filipinos Melvin Mañosa Aguillon Jr. and Jeffrey Espiridion, who were employees of the Cambodian, were also taken into custody.
First DND report on Pogo
Authorities found several cell phones and laptops, one caliber 9mm firearm, and 16 rounds of 9mm ammunition.
It was the first time that the DND announced an arrest related to Pogo activities.
The DND did not say why the group was suspected of espionage or whether they were caught with equipment or gadgets for spying like those seized from other suspected Chinese spies who had been arrested in the Philippines in recent months.
The defense department said it was considering declaring Grande Island, along with adjacent Chiquita Island, as military reservations.
“This will ultimately help secure the operations of the Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone including the Riviera Wharf and the Subic Bay International Airport, in consonance with the ongoing development of the naval operating base of the Philippine Navy to strengthen and maintain our strategic presence along our western seaboard,” DND said.
Alarm raised in 2019
Grande Island served as an important naval fortification for the United States during World War II.
Subic Bay, a former US military base until it closed in 1992, is about 260 kilometers from the Chinese-controlled Bajo de Masinloc (also called Panatag Shoal) in the West Philippine Sea, waters within the country’s exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea.
In 2019, the Philippine Navy raised alarm over Chinese interest in investing on Grande and Chiquita in Subic Bay and Fuga off Cagayan province, three strategic islands in northern Luzon, due to security concerns.
In the same year, the SBMA deferred a proposal by Sanya CEDF Sino-Philippine Investment Corp. to build hotels and recreational facilities on Grande and Chiquita Islands due to “some problems about the proposed activities.”
Earlier Subic raid
Following the crackdown on all Pogo companies in the country, most Chinese nationals employed by Pogo companies inside the free port—such as Great Empire Gaming and Amusement Corp., Northfolk Information Technologies Inc., and Ekxinum Inc.—have returned to China.
But an exception was noted at Teleempire Inc., where only six out of 57 Chinese nationals departed, leaving 51 individuals unaccounted for until a raid on Sept. 4, 2024, uncovered an illegal Pogo hub operating out of a residential unit within the free port.
Twenty Chinese nationals were caught during the raid, while six more were arrested on Dec. 14 last year for running another Pogo hub from their rented apartment also inside the free port. They were later deported, while the search for the remaining 25 Chinese nationals continues. —WITH A REPORT FROM JOANNA ROSE AGLIBOT
