SEN. SERGE Osme帽a has asked the National Bureau of Investigation to look for a man who was identified as a Chinese junket operator who received more than P600 million of the $81 million stolen from the Bangladesh central bank and laundered in the Philippines.
The Philippines has assured the Bangladesh government transparency and cooperation in connection with the probe of the cross-border money laundering scam.
鈥淎s a government, we are already cooperating and we will continue to cooperate to a degree that it is possible,鈥� Foreign Secretary Jose Rene Almendras told a news briefing on Monday.
鈥淭he degree of investigation and the diligence being put to it are not just to respond to the Bangladeshis鈥� question, but to really study the existing procedures here,鈥� Almendras, a former banker before assuming posts in President Aquino鈥檚 Cabinet.
Speaking on a cable television program, Osme帽a, a member of the Senate blue ribbon committee inquiring into the laundering of the $81 million, said Weikang Xu was a 鈥渕ere gambler鈥� and not a 鈥渏unketer鈥� as originally thought by senators.
High rollers
A junket operator brings high rollers from abroad to casinos in the Philippines and lends them money for gambling.
Osme帽a said one of the staff members of the Senate committee was told by officials of Solaire casino that Xu was a gambler.
鈥淲e are trying to locate him and I have asked the NBI to look for him (Xu),鈥� the senator said.
At the first Senate hearing on the heist two weeks ago, the president of a foreign exchange remittance firm said she delivered P600 million to Xu on orders of Maia Santos-Deguito, manager of the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., (RCBC) branch on Jupiter street in Makati City.
Aside from the P600-million cash delivery, Osme帽a said at the second hearing on March 15 a 鈥渕ore curious鈥� cash delivery to Xu of $18 million, which Philrem Service Corp. head Salud Bautista also confirmed.
Bautista said the $18 million was delivered in tranches鈥攆rom Feb. 5 to Feb. 13.
Philrem held briefly the $81 million, which was first deposited to four bank accounts at the RCBC branch on Jupiter Street on Feb. 5, the same day hackers stole the money from the Bangladesh central bank鈥檚 account at the Federal Reserve Bank in New York.
SEN. SERGE Osme帽a PHOTO BY GRIG MONTEGRANDE
The bulk of the money was transferred to accounts of a Chinese-Filipino businessman, William So Go, who has insisted on his innocence. He said his signature was forged to set up the accounts by Deguito.
Deguito earlier said it was businessman Kim Wong who had asked her to open the bank accounts, which turned out to be in the names of fictitious persons.
She also described Wong as a friend of RCBC president/CEO Lorenzo Tan.
Closer to truth
At the television interview Monday, Osme帽a said that among the cast of characters in the money-laundering scheme, Deguito was 鈥渃loser to the truth,鈥� as her testimony at last week鈥檚 closed-door session was easy to check.
鈥淢aia Deguito came across rather well. We believed most of the things she said because we could collaborate information we already had before we came to the meeting,鈥� he said.
Among the facts that she gave was her narration that Wong had asked her to open five bank accounts in May last year and the big amounts of money that were deposited in the accounts, which Wong had been monitoring through her.
Osme帽a said Wong was likely the orchestrator of the money-laundering scheme.
In the TV interview, the senator hoped that the results of the Senate inquiry would 鈥渞esult in the amendments to those laws鈥攚eakening the bank secrecy law and the strengthening of the Anti-Money Laundering Act.鈥�
The Philippines has one of the world鈥檚 strictest bank secrecy laws to protect account holders, while its casinos are exempt from rules aimed at preventing money laundering.
While the Department of Foreign Affairs has no primary role in the probe, Almendras said he met with Bangladesh Ambassador to the Philippines John Gomes recently.
鈥淚 reminded him that it was wonderful that he was allowed in the executive session of the Senate,鈥� Almendras said.