The Palace on Wednesday expressed concern over the arrest of a Chinese national with an alleged ‘spying’ device spotted near the Commission of Elections (Comelec) office in Manila.
”It is quite alarming,” Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said in a briefing.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) did not rule out the possibility that any information were taken to be used to affect the upcoming elections.
Earlier reports featured surveillance footage from the National Bureau of Investigation-National Capital Region (NBI-NCR) allegedly showing two Chinese nationals handling equipment they believed was intended for surveillance activities over the weekend.
Meanwhile, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairperson George Garcia assured the public that there is no cause for concern, emphasizing that no election-related data is stored at the Comelec headquarters.
He added that the Comelec had made a test and that its system was not compromised.
The suspect was brought to the NBI-NCR headquarters, as well as the confiscated catcher.
He will face a complaint for violating the Access Device Act and the Cybercrime Prevention Act.