MANILA – The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has collared 200 Vietnamese nationals in a raid at an alleged scam hub operating in Subic.
In a statement Friday, the NBI said Thursday’s raid was carried out by its Pampanga District Office by virtue of a warrant to search, seize and examine computer data issued by the Olongapo City Regional Trial Court Branch 73, which also resulted in the seizure of computers, mobile phones, and documents used to run the operation.
“Evidence recovered at the site shows that the hub was organized like a business. It ran round-the-clock shifts and had a dedicated payments desk that handled deposits and withdrawals, and moved money through a network of bank and e-wallet accounts. Its staff schedules show teams assigned to targets in the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates, and Bangladesh,” it added.
The bureau is screening every worker found at the site to determine who among them are victims of human trafficking. Those found to have been recruited through deception or held against their will shall be treated as victims under Republic Act (RA) 9208 (Anti Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003).
The NBI is coordinating with the Bureau of Immigration, the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, and the Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on their welfare, documentation, and repatriation.
The NBI is preparing complaints against the persons who organized, managed, and financed the operation for violations of RA 12010 (Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act), RA 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012), RA 9160 (Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001), as amended, and RA 9208, as amended.
“We are working overtime in our fight against scam hubs and transnational online fraud. We will not stop at seizing computers and scripts. We will look into bank accounts, e-wallets, and the people who rent them out,” said NBI Director Melvin Matibag. “We are following the money from this facility to every account that carried it. Anyone who lends an account to these operations will answer for it under the law.”
The NBI is working with the Anti-Money Laundering Council and the financial institutions concerned to identify and freeze the accounts used by the operation. Investigation into the operators and their links abroad is underway. (Ben Pulta/PNA)
