2 immigration execs in bribe case sacked

MANILA, Philippines – Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II has sacked two intelligence officers of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) linked to the alleged P50-million extortion case of Chinese casino mogul Jack Lam.

This came as President Duterte warned anew yesterday that he would terminate Cabinet members who are corrupt or whose departments are involved in anomalies under their watch.

In his arrival speech in Cambodia Tuesday night, Duterte vowed to stop corruption in government, coupled with his intensified drive against crime and illegal drugs.

“Corruption will stop,” Duterte said. “Wala akong papatawarin diyan, maski kaibigan (I will not spare anyone, even my friends). It will stop. Sinabi ko talaga, maski kaming mga kaibigan, sinabi ko, ‘Pagka may nangyari diyan at under sa iyo (I really told them, even among us friends, I said, ‘If anything happens under your watch,’ I’m sorry, maybe, even you would have to resign.’ Kasi yan ang pangako ko. Hindi naman talaga ako yung honest, very honest. Pero matanda ba kasi ako (Because that’s my promise. I don’t claim to be very honest, but I’m old). I’m 71. This is my last hurrah.”

The President did not say if he was alluding to Aguirre, who has under his department the BI, which is now enmeshed in an extortion controversy.

In Manila, Aguirre informed acting BI intelligence division chief Charles Calima Jr. and technical assistant for intelligence Edward Chan of their dismissal from their respective posts in separate letters, after their names surfaced in the scandal.

“Please be informed that your co-terminous appointment in the Bureau of Immigration is hereby terminated. As such, you are no longer required to report for work effective immediately,” read Aguirre’s orders.

The justice chief made the dismissal orders after also recommending to the President the dismissal of BI Deputy Commissioners Al Argosino and Michael Robles, who admitted receiving P50 million from Lam’s camp in what they claimed to be a covert investigation on the reported bribery for the release of 1,316 arrested illegal Chinese workers of Lam’s Fontana Resorts and Casino in Clark Field, Pampanga.

Both Argosino and Robles are fraternity brothers of Duterte and Aguirre in San Beda College of Law’s Lex Talionis.

Argosino and Robles surrendered P30 million in cash to the Department of Justice (DOJ) after 16 days of keeping the money, claiming that the P18 million went to Calima and P2 million to retired police official Wally Sombero, who acted as Lam’s middleman.

They earlier filed a 30-day leave of absence to allow the separate probes of the National Bureau of Investigation and BI, but have been recommended dismissed by Aguirre.

“The action was called for because of the gravity of the accusations. This will also prevent the parties involved from interfering with the ongoing investigations,” Aguirre said.

The DOJ chief said the NBI and BI probes would proceed to determine who is criminally liable for the alleged extortion of Lam.

Argosino and Robles, however, denied the extortion charge and said they were conducting an investigation and were just “framed up” during the incident last Nov. 27 at the City of Dreams Casino in Parañaque City, which was caught on closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera.

Aguirre said he learned about the incident from Sombero days before the two BI officials confided in him.

As per Sombero, the money was not for processing of the license of Lam’s casino, but for the release of 1,316 Chinese nationals arrested inside the casino last Nov. 24.   

Lam has been blacklisted over the illegal casino operation and was ordered arrested by Duterte for alleged bribery, economic sabotage and harboring illegal aliens.

P20-M bribe missing

Meanwhile, Aguirre revealed that the remaining P20 million from the P50 million received by Argosino and Robles was still missing as of yesterday, as both Calima and Sombero have not surrendered any amount.

It was learned that after manual count by DOJ personnel, the P30 million cash surrendered by the BI executives was short by P1,000.

Argosino and Robles earlier filed complaints for corruption of public officials and violation of anti-wiretapping law against Lam, Sombero, Calima and Lam’s two Chinese interpreters before the Parañaque City Prosecutor’s Office.

According to the complaint, Calima took P18 million from the P48 million supposedly to be shared with Sombero, BI Commissioner Jaime Morente, Chan and newspaper columnist Ramon Tulfo, who exposed the alleged extortion on Dec. 10.

Argosino and Robles said they gave Calima P18 million on Dec. 9 after the latter told them that he knew what happened in the City of Dreams and that Sombero has “surreptitiously, secretly and maliciously” recorded his conversation with Argosino and Robles.

Sombero and Tulfo have both denied the allegation. Tulfo said he would file a libel case against Argosino and Robles.  

‘Don’t be demoralized’

This was what Commissioner Morente told BI personnel yesterday, amid the extortion controversy involving two commissioners and two intelligence officers.

In a statement, the BI chief urged employees nationwide to continue performing their respective duties efficiently despite the ongoing investigation on reported corruption among its officials.

“Let not the developments of recent days derail us from the task at hand. We have a job to do, a job that we must do well as one team,” he appealed.

“We must stay focused on our mandate, on delivering even better service to our citizens, our overseas Filipino workers, our travelers, our foreign nationals, all who are counting on us to be efficient and professional at all times. We must remain steadfast, defined by our oath of service and the higher goals of security, border control and peace and order,” Morente stressed.

The BI chief lamented how the controversy involving a Chinese casino mogul came in the middle of reforms in the agency.

“Together, we have made substantial moves to improve service efficiency, tighten border control and address the challenge of corruption. In just a few months, we have been able to eliminate red tape by reducing the number of processors and signatories, and modernizing the ACR i-Card System,” he said.

Aguirre has said the BI has been home to many syndicates involved in corruption. 

Meanwhile, Aguirre has designated Immigration Officer IV Jose Carlitos Licas as officer-in-charge replacing Robles, while lawyer Estanislao Canta takes Argosino’s post.

‘Spare Duterte the embarassment’

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez called on the two BI deputy commissioners to relinquish their posts the soonest and spare the President the embarrassment.

“I want to call their attention to just resign and spare the President the inconvenience and embarrassment. They ought to voluntarily resign,” he said in Filipino in a chance interview with reporters after he was given a plaque Tuesday afternoon.

The Davao del Norte congressman pointed out that it is very hard for Argosino and Robles to deny that they didn’t accept the bribe money, as they were caught on video receiving the funds.

Facing reporters in a news conference arranged by Aguirre Tuesday, both denied they accepted P50 million in payoffs from Lam in exchange for the release of detained Chinese casino workers, who lacked proper visas.

Argosino and Robles, both appointees of Duterte, claimed they were trying to entrap Lam, but the plan backfired when they were caught literally holding the bag.

They decided to turn over P30 million to Aguirre for safekeeping.

No entrapment done

Meanwhile, Sombero’s lawyer said there was no entrapment operation done, as claimed by Robles and Argosino, when they received money from Lam. 

“My client is a seasoned policeman, even a chief of the intelligence. He said if that was an entrapment, why only involve two people?” lawyer Ted Contacto said, stressing that many people would be involved in such stings.

“Also, if there was really an entrapment, why not call for reinforcement?” he added.

Contacto said in the judicial affidavit that Sombero prepared, he confirmed that “money changed hands” between Sombero and Argosino and Robles.

Sources privy to the case previously told The STAR that Robles and Argosino demanded P150 million from Lam for them to release the 600 detained Chinese illegal immigrants, but this was reduced to P100 million.

Sombero also told in detail the P50-million payoff, half of what was agreed upon, to Robles and Argosino between 2 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. of Nov. 27.

He was said to give two take-out bags containing P10 million each to Robles and Argosino at Erwin’s Gastrobar on the upper ground floor of the City of Dreams in Parañaque City.

The remaining P30 million would arrive at 4:30 a.m., placed in three take-out bags and which Sombero gave to Robles and Argosino at the Red Ginger restaurant, also on the casino-hotel’s upper ground level.

Sombero once again met with Robles and Argosino in a suite at Crown Towers Hotel, also in the City of Dreams, on Nov. 30 to receive the other half of the money.

But the money never arrived, as Lam allegedly learned he might be duped and that the detained Chinese illegal aliens would not be released.

Both payoffs on Nov. 27 were captured on CCTV cameras and were monitored by BI’s intelligence unit, the sources added.

Contacto clarified that only Argosino “dictated the terms” of the alleged transaction, according to Sombero’s statement. – With Christine Mendez, Delon Porcalla, Ghio Ong