Five Chinese workers of the now banned Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) have been arrested at the Zamboanga International Airport (ZIA) in Zamboanga City.
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) identified those arrested as Ying Guanzhen, 31; Yang Jinlong, 29; Liu Xin, 28; Shen Kan, 36; and Luo Honglin, 27.
The BI said that "all five individuals were blacklisted and had violated the terms and conditions of their stay.”
It also said that "two of the arrested individuals are fugitives wanted in China, while all five were previously linked to Lucky South 99, a POGO company that was raided for alleged illegal activities.”
“The arrest was effected upon their arrival in Zamboanga City from Tawi-Tawi, escorted by police officers,” the BI said.
“They were informed of their immigration violations and later turned over to the Philippine National Police (PNP) for safekeeping, pending a preliminary investigation by the BI Legal Division,” it also said.
BI Commissioner Joel Anthony M. Viado requested the arrest of the five Chinese nationals after the BI received information that “the group was stopped during their attempt to flee the country through the backdoor exit route from Tawi-Tawi to Sabah, Malaysia, using a ‘transporter’ to evade authorities.”
The BI explained that based on testimonies of Zamboanga City residents, a “transporter” is “an individual who facilitates the illegal travel of people from the Philippines to neighboring countries.”