‘Pogo hub’ in Bataan seems into ‘black market banking’ – Paocc

FILE PHOTO: A Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub operating behind the town hall of Bamban in Tarlac province has been shut down following a government raid in March 2024 due to human trafficking, online scams, and other illegal activities. – Government authorities raided another suspected Pogo hub, this time in Bataan province. The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (Paocc) said Friday, November 1, 2024, that the alleged Pogo hub in Bataan appears to be engaged in “black market banking.” INQUIRER/RICHARD A. REYES

MANILA, Philippines — The suspected Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub in Bataan which government authorities recently raided appears to be engaged in “black market banking,” the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (Paocc) said Friday.

During a radio interview, Paocc spokesperson Director Winston Casio noted something “out of the ordinary” in the operation of Central One Bataan PH Incorporated, which is located t the Centro Park compound in Bagac.

“This is out of the ordinary; there seem to be indicators of black market banking,” he said over Radyo 630.

READ: Authorities raid Pogo hub in Bataan BPO company

“Frankly speaking, there is an indication of black market banking here. So I hope we are wrong, based on what we saw [there are] indicators of black market banking or so-called underground banking. This is not an ordinary company,” he also said in mixed Filipino and English.

Casio said they discovered several red flags when they raided the company, pointing to the high possibility of it being actually a Pogo hub despite using the name BPO, which may be a front.

Among these red flags are the long lines of mobile phones that supposedly receive payment system entries.

“We also saw them using a gaming platform we call Winbox. That Winbox gaming platform is banned in other countries because it is flagged down as [it is] used in so-called cryptocurrency investment scams,” he stressed, still peaking in mixed Filipino and English.

READ: Gov’t shuts down 2 more Pogos for defying ban

While the raid resulted in the arrest of the firm’s big bosses, five individuals comprising four Malaysians and one Thai national must still be found, according to the Paocc official.

“There are five more who are also subject of a warrant that we did not get. So what we did was, we made a request yesterday to the Bureau of Immigration, asking for possible alert status on the bosses who are still not apprehended,” Casio said.

Last July, during his third State of the Nation Address, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered a ban on Pogos nationwide, which prompted a series of raids against offices or companies suspected to be operating as Pogo hubs.

Marcos directed the winding down and stopping of Pogo businesses by the end of 2024.