Interpol issues red notice vs Atong Ang

Atong Ang —INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) has issued a red notice against gambling tycoon Charlie “Atong” Ang, according to Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla.

An Interpol red notice is a request for law enforcement agencies worldwide to “locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.”

“It’s already been issued as of Monday,” Remulla told the Inquirer in a text message on Thursday.

READ: Atong Ang spotted in Calabarzon 2 weeks ago, says DILG chief Remulla

Request justified

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) of the Philippine National Police requested the Interpol to issue a red notice for Ang in January after courts issued arrest warrants for the gambling tycoon. Ang and 20 others face multiple counts of kidnapping over the disappearances of at least 34 cockfighting aficionados or “sabungeros.”

Although the Bureau of Immigration said at the time that there was no information Ang had left the country, CIDG director Maj. Gen. Robert Alexander Morico justified the request, saying it was in case the gambling tycoon “leaves through the back door or elsewhere.”

The “back door” refers to illegal exit points, commonly in the southern Philippines, that are used to bypass immigration authorities.

Asked whether Ang had been traveling in and out of the country during an interview on GMA’s “Unang Balita,” Remulla replied: “He was spotted in Region 4A a little less than two weeks ago. We had follow-up operations, [but] we missed him by a day,” he said. /cb