Following a search on a suspected online gambling and fraud hub in a major commercial section of the capital, Philippine authorities claimed Thursday they had detained over 400 people, half of whom were from China.
Among the 401 people arrested were 207 Chinese and 132 Vietnamese nationals who were taken into custody on Wednesday evening at a Pasay City condominium complex. According to a government assessment, Philippine police accused them of being involved in cryptocurrency, romance, and investment scams, as well as illicit internet gaming enterprises.
According to the article, other individuals who were detained came from Madagascar, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Myanmar.
The number of arrests demonstrated how profitable internet businesses had flourished in spite of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to law enforcement to shut them down by the end of the previous year.
An unknown number of online gambling organizations have stayed in the Philippines and engaged in a variety of Internet-based frauds, despite the fact that many are thought to have fled to other nations, such as Cambodia and Myanmar, as a result of a continuous crackdown.
There has been much conjecture that Philippine regulators and law enforcement had previously let illicit internet gambling organizations to operate in the nation in return for hefty payments.
The latest raid “stemmed from a report from a concerned citizen who has been noticing the large number of foreign nationals in the said building,” the government report said.
The internet hub, which was closed by the Pasay city government for operating without a business authorization, also had 52 Filipino housekeeping employees who were not involved in the alleged infractions, according to officials.
Computers, SIM card bundles, and other electronic devices that the suspects were reportedly using to target clients outside of the Philippines were confiscated by authorities, according to officials.
Authorities in the Philippines have already prosecuted arrested defendants who were involved in such internet fraud with cybercrimes and human trafficking. A large number of other individuals were deported to their home countries when it was determined that they had been unlawfully recruited or duped into working for these organizations.
In a 2023 report, the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights stated that criminal gangs have coerced hundreds of thousands of people in Southeast Asia into engaging in illegal online scam operations, such as fraudulent gambling schemes, phony investment pitches, and false romantic ploys.
With many of the workers caught in virtual slavery and compelled to take part in scams that target individuals online, especially those in China where gambling is illegal, these scams have grown to be a significant problem in Asia.
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