Philippine senate hearing: PAGOR official repeats claim that ex-PNP chief took bribes

Raul Villanueva was called to testify at the hearing.

The Philippines.- Raul Villanueva, senior vice president for security at the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), has alleged that a former police chief accepted bribes from former Philippine offshore gaming operators.

At the ongoing Senate hearing on operators, senate deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros asked Villanueva about claims that a high-ranking official from the Bureau of Immigration accepted a PHP200m (US$3.59m) bribe to assist Alice Guo, the suspended mayor of Bamban, Tarlac, in leaving the country.

Villanueva said: “There are talks within the intelligence community, but there is no confirmation or witnesses yet if someone was actually paid but that is the talk now. But they’re still validating it.”

He added: “I think it was mentioned, a former PNP chief. I don’t know who. I think they are validating it right now. I even went to NICA [National Intelligence Coordinating Agency] last week, but there’s no information about it.”

Senator Ronald Dela Rosa called for the identification of the person in question, but Villanueva said he had not confirmed the information.

Alice Guo was arrested in Tangerang City, Jakarta, earlier this month after several weeks of intensive search by authorities. Guo was able to leave the Philippines on July 17. She travelled to Malaysia, arrived in Singapore on July 21 and Indonesia on August 18. She faces allegations related to illegal offshore gaming operators and her citizenship status.

See also: Alice Guo could face 560-year sentence