{"id":777021889,"date":"2025-01-09T16:17:59","date_gmt":"2025-01-09T19:17:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/?p=777021889"},"modified":"2026-04-22T02:52:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T05:52:11","slug":"illegal-gambling-in-the-philippines-400-arrested-in-paranaque-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/illegal-gambling-in-the-philippines-400-arrested-in-paranaque-city","title":{"rendered":"Illegal gambling in the Philippines: 400 arrested in Para\u00f1aque City"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A raid was conducted in Para\u00f1aque City.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Philippines.-\u00a0The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has arrested\u00a0<strong>400 <\/strong>illegal aliens<strong>\u00a0<\/strong>allegedly linked to offshore gaming operators in a raid in Para\u00f1aque City. BI intelligence division chief <strong>Fortunato Manahan Jr.\u00a0<\/strong>said the Fugitive Search Unit (FSU) and Anti-Terrorist Group (ATG) have been monitoring the activities of those arrested for some time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The BI found the aliens were working at a company in Barangay Tambo in illicit activities, including online scam operations targeting victims abroad. Manahan said: &#8220;Their operations were found to be in violation of immigration laws and posed significant risks to the public.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those arrested are currently undergoing booking procedures and will remain in custody at the agency premises while awaiting deportation proceedings. Manahan said the BI is working with relevant government agencies to <strong>expedite the process<\/strong> and ensure that those found guilty of violations are held accountable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">BI commissioner <strong>Joel Anthony Viado<\/strong> said the raid was part of the bureau&#8217;s intensified efforts to combat illegal activities related to offshore gaming operators and ensure aliens comply with local regulations and laws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Viado\u2019s statement follows the BI\u2019s announcement of deportation proceedings targeting <strong>over 11,000 former offshore gaming workers <\/strong>who failed to leave the country before December 31, 2024, the deadline set by the Department of Justice (DOJ) for <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/philippines-bi-warns-companies-to-avoid-hiring-former-foreign-offshore-gaming-workers\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">foreign workers employed by&nbsp;offshore gaming operators<\/a>&nbsp;to voluntarily return to their home countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Viado also urged the public to r<strong>eport any suspected violations<\/strong>, assuring that all reports would be treated with confidentiality. He said: \u201cThis is not just about compliance; it\u2019s about safeguarding the integrity of our immigration system and ensuring that only those with legitimate purposes are allowed to stay in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>See also:&nbsp;<\/strong><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/philippines-doj-warns-foreign-offshore-gaming-workers-who-are-still-in-the-country\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Philippines DOJ warns foreign offshore gaming workers who are still in the country<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Offshore gaming operators ban<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On November 8, 2024, president Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. issued\u00a0<strong>Executive Order (EO) 74<\/strong>, ordering an immediate ban on offshore gaming and online gaming in the country. Signed by executive secretary\u00a0<strong>Lucas Bersamin<\/strong>, the order required offshore gaming operators and related auxiliary and ancillary services with issued licences to wind up by December 3, 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The order referenced a study by the Department of Finance (DOF) that found that the negative effects and risks linked to offshore gaming operations \u201csignificantly<strong>\u00a0outweighed the economic and social benefits<\/strong>&#8220;. A report from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) also warned that offshore gaming operators were linked to money laundering, fraud and other illicit financial activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe high reputational risks associated with POGO\/IGL operations deter foreign investment and tourism, undermining the efforts of the National Government in promoting the country as a safe and sustainable investment and tourism destination,\u201d the order stated.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A raid was conducted in Para\u00f1aque City.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":176,"featured_media":33583,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in the Philippines arrested 400 illegal aliens in Para\u00f1aque City, allegedly linked to offshore gaming operators conducting online scam operations. This enforcement action aligns with the government's broader policy, initiated by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s Executive Order 74, which mandated an immediate ban on offshore gaming and required licensed operators to wind up operations by December 3, 2024, citing significant reputational risks and illicit financial activities.","focusai_entities":"National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Bureau of Immigration (BI), Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Finance (DOF), Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), Fortunato Manahan Jr., Joel Anthony Viado, Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., Lucas Bersamin","focusai_location":"Philippines, Para\u00f1aque City, Barangay Tambo","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.95), regulator (1.0), compliance_legal (1.0), operator_casino (0.9), affiliate_publisher (0.7), payments_fraud_aml (0.95), investor_analyst (0.98), supplier_vendor (0.85), journalist_researcher (0.95)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"Impact on POGO Exodus","query":"What are the projected economic and social impacts of the mandated wind-up of licensed offshore gaming operators and the mass deportation of foreign workers on the Philippine economy and labor market?"},{"label":"Regulatory Framework Evolution","query":"How will the Philippine government's enforcement posture and the complete ban on offshore gaming influence the development of future iGaming regulatory frameworks in other Southeast Asian jurisdictions?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[439,16333],"tags":[23911,4138],"class_list":["post-777021889","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-legal-news","category-south-east-asia-news","tag-gambling-regulation","tag-online-gambling"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777021889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/176"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777021889"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777021889\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":777021895,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777021889\/revisions\/777021895"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777021889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777021889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/asia-pacific\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777021889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}