400 foreign workers held in Pasay ‘Pogo’ raid

‘SCAM HUBS’ KEEP SPROUTING The latest raid on a suspected scam center in Pasay City on Wednesday, its foreign workers rounded up here, bolsters suspicions that the now-outlawed Pogos are just “reinventing” themselves to evade the ban imposed in the game. —PAOCC PHOTO

Around 400 foreign workers were arrested by authorities in Pasay City on Wednesday in the latest raid on a suspected scam center, which was also described as a Pogo, or Philippine offshore gaming operator, that continued to defy the ban imposed by the Marcos administration.

The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) said the search conducted on the alleged Pogo hub yielded evidence that it was engaged in so-called love scams, spamming activities, and cryptocurrency and investment fraud.

The scams were primarily conducted via messaging platforms, such as Viber and Telegram, it added.

Several text blasters, one-time password generators and cold crypto wallets were also found in the hub located at One Wheels Condominium on Macapagal Avenue, PAOCC said.

Different nationalities

Of the 401 foreign nationals arrested, 207 were Chinese, 132 were Vietnamese, 24 were Koreans, 11 were Malaysians, 14 were Indonesians, 12 were from Myanmarese and one was from Madagascar.

Fifty-two Filipinos worked in the suspected Pogo hub, PAOCC said.

The commission acted on a report from a concerned citizen about the the large number of foreign nationals coming regularly to the 10-story office building.

The operation was conducted in collaboration with the Pasay City government, the Philippine National Police’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, and the Department of Justice’s Office of Cybercrime.

The city government issued a cease-and-desist order that immediately shut down the company’s operation for lack of a business permit and for violation of the Pogo ban ordered by President Marcos in 2024. —FRANCES MANGOSING AND PNA