549 POGO workers undergo inquest proceedings

MANILA, Philippines — Up to 549 foreigners who were apprehended in raids on Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hubs in Parañaque and Pasay underwent inquest proceedings, the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission reported yesterday.

PAOCC spokesman Winston John Casio said special prosecutors from the Bureau of Immigration conducted the inquest.

Casio said 147 foreigners, mostly Chinese nationals, were nabbed during a raid on a POGO facility at the ATI building in Barangay Don Galo in Parañaque on Feb. 27.

The other POGO workers were arrested at a condominium building in Pasay on March 7.

Except for the 18 foreigners who were charged with human trafficking, the other POGO workers were subjected to summary deportation.

“The Chinese nationals will be sent home through a chartered flight paid for by their government,” Casio said.

There are 899 foreigners detained in the PAOCC’s custodial facility in Pasay.