(Eagle News) — The Bureau of Immigration has arrested 36 foreign nationals in a raid of an illegal online gaming company in Pasay City on Monday, April 20.
The bureau said the raid in Double Dragon was conducted after the bureau’s intelligence division received reports of foreign nationals working without the appropriate permits in the area.
“We coordinated with (the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation) and verified that this company is unlicensed and has no authority to operate,” Immigration bureau chief Jaime Morente said.
Bureau intelligence chief Fortunato Manahan, Jr. said that the company was discovered to be engaged in illegal live studio gambling.
The operators and management are composed mostly of Koreans.
“Apart from the live studio, they were also conducting illegal and clandestine online gaming operations,” Manahan said.
According to Manahan, the bureau initially rounded up 40 individuals.
Four of them, however, were found to be properly documented.
Of the 36 arrested, two were Chinese, two Indonesians, while 32 were Koreans.
Those arrested will be detained at the BI’s Warden Facility in Bicutan, Taguig upon release of their negative RT-PCR testing results, the bureau said.
“We call on all foreigners to legalize your stay. Do not take advantage of the pandemic, because despite the challenges, our work never stops, and we will continue to arrest, deport, and blacklist any alien who dare disobey our laws,” Morente added.