Chinese Fugitive Who Victimized 20,000 Fellow Chinese Nabbed By BI At NAIA

A Chinese national wanted by authorities in his country for involvement in online gambling where he victimized 20,000 compatriots was nabbed by Bureau of Immigration (BI) officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

According to BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco, Chinese authorities have alleged that the passenger and his cohorts operated a gambling website and employed various schemes to cheat their customers as a result of which they profited from the money the victims lost from online games.

It is estimated that more than 20,000 Chinese customers were victimized by the syndicate which allegedly earned more than 100 million yuan, or roughly US$13 million, from the fraudulent scheme.

Tansingco said the BI-Interpol unit intercepted the passenger last April 17 at the NAIA terminal 1 after attempting to board a Xiamen Airlines flight to China.

The passenger, whose identity was not divulged in compliance with Interpol protocols, reportedly registered a blue notice hit in the BI’s Interpol derogatory system, thus prompting the immigration officer who processed him to refer the alien to his supervisors for secondary inspection.

The immigration supervisors on-duty, after verifying that the passenger and the person with a derogatory record are one and the same, reported the same to the BI’s Interpol unit.

The BI then informed counterparts in China of the fugitive’s impending arrival, alerting them to prepare for his arrest.

“He was arrested upon arrival at the Xiamen airport as Chinese authorities were already informed about his arrival,” said BI-Interpol acting chief Jaime Bustamante.

Interpol records show that the Chinese fugitive was accused of being a member of a criminal syndicate that operatives illegal online gambling sites in the Internet which is strictly prohibited under Chinese laws.