MANILA – The Philippine National Police (PNP) is investigating allegations that a Chinese fugitive arrested in Makati City for telecom-related fraud was being protected by armed escorts, including an active police officer and a military reservist.
PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the reports are troubling and vowed that the organization will not tolerate any officer who may have aided a wanted individual.
“If it is confirmed that a police officer helped protect a fugitive, it is a serious violation and a betrayal of the public’s trust,” Nartatez said in a statement issued Friday.
He assured the public that the PNP has begun a joint investigation with the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to determine the involvement of the officer and any possible links to the alleged fraud operation.
The 29-year-old Chinese national was apprehended on Wednesday along Mercedes Street in Barangay Bel-Air, Makati City by BI operatives working with personnel from the PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
According to the BI, the suspect is believed to be involved in multi-million-peso telecommunications scams overseas. Authorities located him in Makati after receiving an intelligence report about his presence in the area.
Immigration records show that the foreign national entered the country in November 2019 as a temporary visitor but failed to renew or adjust his visa status, making him an overstaying alien.
The BI also disclosed that the individual had already been placed under a blacklist order due to previous immigration violations.
ia/xf
