Zubiri: Tsinoy’s kidnap-slay may have POGO links

MANILA, Philippines — The four foreigners who were arrested last week for allegedly kidnapping and killing a Filipino-Chinese businessman could be connected to crime rings involved in Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO), Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said yesterday.

Zubiri condemned the killing of Mario Sy Uy.

Zubiri urged the Philippine National Police (PNP) to look into the possibility that the four suspects – three Chinese and a Vietnamese – were linked to other POGO-related crimes.

Chinese Bei Huimin, 30; Jielong Shen, 26, and Sun XiaoHui, 26, were arrested in Parañaque after they allegedly withdrew the ransom money deposited in their bank accounts.

Vietnamese Hong Puc Le, 33, was nabbed in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig after his bank account was used to receive the P560,000 in ransom deposited by the victim’s family, the police Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) said.

Sen. Grace Poe urged the government to take bolder steps to stop kidnapping-for-ransom groups that have grown more brazen with the help of rogue members of the military and police.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros also expressed belief that the killing of Uy was POGO-related.

PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said the AKG is conducting a thorough investigation of the incident.

“Based on our initial information, this group could have been linked to previous kidnapping cases,” Fajardo told reporters. – Ralph Edwin Villanueva