No complaint no probe, says DOJ on Pogo as money-laundering conduit
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Justice (DOJ) cannot start an investigation on reports that the Philippine offshore gaming operations (Pogos) are being used as conduits to launder money.
Justice Undersecretary Adrian Ferdinand Sugay explained that the DOJ cannot do a motu propio investigation or an investigation on its own.
“We have to wait for a complaint,” he said.
But he assured that the DOJ is closely coordinating with the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC).
“We’ve coordinated with the AMLC to make sure that the matter is looked into and if there are appropriate complaints or criminal complaints that need to be pursued, we are ready to help them pursue these cases,” he told reporters.
The issue of Pogos being used as a conduit for money laundering came out during a Senate hearing following a shooting incident between two Chinese men in Makati.
Senator Richard Gordon claimed that the Chinese citizens who arrived in the country from December last year to Feb. 12 this year have brought in more than $160 million in cash.
The Senator said the AMLC appears to be “sleeping on the job.”
But Sugay said: “These things, you know, you have to do it very carefully, very deliberately and we also want to make sure that the work is done properly.”
“The AMLC is empowered under the republic act creating [it] to go after the assets and make sure that these are secured or these are being seized, if needed, even at the very outset,” he added.
