The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has shut down an online sex trafficking operation of Chinese and Russian organized crime groups (OCG) that led to the arrest of seven persons, including a Chinese national, and the rescue of seven teen-aged Filipinas and four adult foreign women.

NBI Director Jaime B. Santiago presented on Monday, July 1, the arrested persons as Moises S. Bognot, Jermaine E. Villanueva, Glenn Paolo P. Solijon, Darwin P. Tagalog, Lance Clifford B, Ungriano, Nighjer C. Teriote, and Chinese national Zhang Wenyou.

After the non-government organization (NGO) La Familia Rescue sought assistance against the sex trafficking operation, Santiago said operatives of the NBI’s Cybercrime Division (CCD) conducted an entrapment operation last Thursday, June 27, at a condominium in Quezon City where customers are taken to get sexual services.

“Ang narescue ng ating operatiba ay pitong Filipina minors, 13 years old to 17 years old, tatlong Russian national at isang Kazakhstan national (Our operatives rescued seven Filipina minors who are 13 to 17 years of age, three Russian women, and a Kazakhstan woman),” said Director Santiago who noted that all those rescued have been turned over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Santiago said the clientele of the sex den are foreigners and the Filipinas were being offered for their sexual services at P5,000 each and the foreign women, who are all in their early 30s, for P45,000 each.

He said that Bognot, Villanueva, Solijon, Tagalog and Ungriano were arrested at the condominium unit while Teriote and Zhang, who were pointed as the persons behind the sex trafficking operation, were arrested during a follow-up operation at a hotel and casino in Paranaque City.

NBI-CCD Chief Jeremy C. Lotoc said the sex trafficking operation gets clientele through the online platforms like Telegram, Facebook and Instagram.

Lotoc said the sex trafficking operation started during the pandemic and initially offered sexual services to Chinese clientele and later expanded to other nationalities like Malaysian, Vietnamese, Taiwanese, and Europeans.

“Actually ang tinitingnan po natin dito is a combination ng Chinese OCG at saka Russian OCG (We believe we are looking at an operation of Chinese and Russian organized crime groups),” he said.

He explained the Chinese and Russian OCGs have been working together in operating sex trafficking operations in the Philippines and other countries like Thailand, Singapore, Dubai, and China.

He admitted: "Hindi namin ma-fathom ‘yung laki but considering na transnational ‘yung ganyang scope talagang organized crime group ito (we could not fathom the extent of the operations but since their activities are transnational these groups are organized).”

“Based doon sa investigation nakita po natin na layered ho sila. As a matter of fact, financed ho sila ng malaking grupo (Based on our investigation they are layered. As a matter of fact, they are financed by a larger group),” he said.