Hotel closed over sex den may reopen

MANILA, Philippines — A Makati hotel that was closed last year after the police found 44 rooms being used by a Chinese national operating a prostitution den might resume operations soon.

Maxx Hotel applied last week for a police clearance, one of the requirements for its reopening, after the Makati Prosecutor’s Office dismissed the case of human trafficking against its management and eight other Chinese nationals.

“We will not object to the request of Maxx Hotel to reopen, since the complaint we filed against them was already dismissed,” the city police investigation chief, Police Maj. Gideon Ines, said in an interview.

In a letter to the Makati police, the hotel management said it was happy with the results of the investigation.

In a 14-page resolution dated Feb. 14, Senior Assistant City Prosecutor Romel Ordona said the Makati police, acting as complainants, “[had] not submitted [even] an iota of evidence]” to prove their allegations against the hotel’s registered owners.

In a raid on Oct. 7 last year, the police rescued 36 Chinese women and a Vietnamese woman while arresting 20 Chinese patrons at the hotel.

A contract between the hotel manager and Chinese national Wang Yucheng allowed the latter to rent 44 rooms at a discounted rate of P2,100 per day, instead of the usual P3,500 per day, starting in early 2019.