Senator flags AMLC, banks over Guo transactions

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian —Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau

MANILA, Philippines — The banks that facilitated the suspicious transactions of dismissed Mayor Alice Guo of Bamban town in Tarlac province and her alleged cohorts should be held liable, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said on Saturday as he rebuked the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) anew for its failure to flag their questionable financial activities.

According to Gatchalian, the banks and other financial institutions were mandated by law to immediately report to the AMLC any dubious transaction amounting to at least P500,000.

In the case of Guo, he said it took the AMLC four years to act on her possible involvement in money laundering activities in connection with the illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) in her town.

READ: Gatchalian warns: Guo family members are ‘professional swindlers’

On Friday, the AMLC filed a string of cases against Guo and 35 others for alleged illegal funneling of P7 billion to build the sprawling Pogo hub that reportedly hosted various scamming activities and other serious crimes.

“If the Senate did not investigate this matter, they could still be operating now and bringing in [dirty] money,” Gatchalian told the “Usapang Senado” radio program on dwIZ.

“That’s why the banks and AMLC should explain. They all have liabilities here. For me, the banks should be accountable … because they did not report [the transactions] to the AMLC,” he said.

Earlier, Gatchalian estimated the construction of the entire Pogo complex in Bamban, which the authorities raided in March, cost as much as P6 billion.

He said the filing of 87 counts of money laundering against Guo and her alleged accomplices supported his suspicions that the funds spent to develop and build the Pogo facility were proceeds of various transnational crimes, such as online fraud and gambling, that were laundered into the country.

He said the failure of the banks to report the questionable transactions was a “red flag” that should have prompted the AMLC to act on its own.

Gatchalian stressed the AMLC was remiss in its job to be proactive in addressing such matter.

When asked if the banks should be included as respondents in the cases against Guo and others, Gatchalian said it was up to the AMLC to investigate their possible criminal liabilities.

‘Red flag’

“To be honest, this issue was brought up during the executive session. So definitely, the banks share the accountability,” he said.

Gatchalian also pointed out the AMLC should now conduct a similar financial scrutiny of the individuals involved in Lucky South 99 Outsourcing Inc. and Whirlwind Corp., the companies behind the similar Pogo facility in Porac, Pampanga, that authorities had also raided and closed down.

He said the engineers he had consulted told him that about P5 billion was needed to put up the Pogo hub in Porac, which had private villas and dozens of multistory buildings.

Katherine Cassandra Li Ong, Lucky South’s authorized representative, was included on the list of respondents in the complaint filed by the AMLC, the National Bureau of Investigation and Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission filed at the Department of Justice.