The Department of Justice has approved the criminal indictment in court of 20 foreigners arrested during a raid last August 1 of the facility of a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) in Pasay City.
Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Felix Ty on Friday said the foreigners, who are Chinese nationals, will be charged before the Pasay City regional trial court (RTC) with violations of the Securities Regulations Code.
Ty did not specify the particular provisions violated in the law under Republic Act No. 8799. He neither identified those to be charged in court.
The Chinese nationals were among those presented for inquest proceedings last Aug. 3 at the raided Rivendell Global Support, Inc. located at SJ Mobile Building in Pasay City.
Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Richard Anthony Fadullon had earlier said those subjected to inquest proceedings included 21 Chinese nationals and 91 Filipinos.
According to Ty, the charges against the Filipinos will be subjected to further investigation. “So, they were able to go home to their families pending the continuation of the investigation,” he said.
“PAGCOR (Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation) already canceled the registration of Rivendell, not just the POGO in Pasay, but also the sister establishments of Rivendell located in the country,” Ty said, citing the inquest resolution.
“There are two more establishments whose licenses were canceled,” he added.
At the same time, Ty said a Pasay City court on Friday ruled for “the denial for the petition of habeas corpus by these Chinese nationals who asked to be released.”
He said that 15 Chinese nationals filed petitions for a writ of habeas corpus. “But there was a united opposition by the different member agencies which were impleaded.
The agencies included the DOJ, the Philippine National Police, the National Bureau of Investigation), the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission, and the Bureau of Immigration,” he recalled.