In line with the relentless campaign of the National Bureau of Investigation against illegal activities, operatives of NBI-Anti-Organized and Transnational Crime Division arrested three persons for trying to swindle victims of P10 million in Quezon City.
In a statement, NBI Director Dante Gierran identified the subjects as Enriquito T. Dizon, Lourdes V. Bonifacio, and John Alvin B. Diguango.
Charges for violation of Article 315 of the Revised Penal Code in relation to P.D. No. 1689 were filed against the arrested subjects, as well as at large suspects Adel Gerona and a certain alias “Henry.”
The operation stemmed from the complaint filed before the office of the NBI-AOTCD that certain individuals who claimed to have authority to represent National Housing Authority in obtaining or securing contracts for their housing projects nationwide.
The suspects enticed the victim to grab the contract offered by the NHA.
The suspects assured the victim that they could easily obtain the contract if they could provide P10,000,000 as buy-out fee and to lock-in the said project.
The victim and his associate contractors agreed to pay P 3,000,000 as part of the P10-million buy-out fee and agreed to meet in one of the restaurants at White Plains, Quezon City.
The victim verified the authority of the suspects from the NHA and found that the group had no authority to obtain nor secure contracts of work from any NHA office.
On Jan. 10, NBI-AOTCD operatives together with the complainant and his associates proceeded to the meeting area where the partial payment of P3 million would be handed to the subjects.
The victim showed the P3 million marked money to the suspects.
Suspect Dizon instructed suspect Bonifacio to count the money in the comfort room.
At this juncture, the operatives of NBI-AOTCD announced their authority and arrested the suspects.
The entrapment operation resulted in the seizure of several documents pertaining to alleged NHA projects.