Police have arrested two Chinese nationals, one of them an employer of a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operation, during an entrapment Monday night in Pasay City.
Arrested were Chuo Xiao, 27, a resident of Pamplona in Las Piñas City, and Han Xiaodong, 35, a POGO employer and a resident of Unit 8-B, Plaza Condominium in Salcedo Village in Makati City.
Police also seized more than 18 grams of metamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu worth P125,000 from the suspects.
A composite team from the National Capital Region and the Pasay City police conducted the operation on Gil Puyat Avenue and Taft Avenue in Pasay City around 7:20 p.m.
The authorities suspect the foreigners are involved in the illegal drug trade in southern Metro Manila, saying the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency considers them as high-value targets.
Police also seized from the suspects one small paper envelope, one digital weighing scale, P4,000 used in the entrapment operation, and a Toyota Fortuner with registration plate WIO 643.
The suspects are now detained in Pasay City pending the filing of criminal charges against them.
In 2019, a number of Chinese nationals—most of them engaged in POGO operations—were arrested for their alleged role in kidnapping, drug and human trafficking, prostitution, and illegal gambling operations in Makati, Parañaque, Pasay and Las Piñas.
Those cases led the Philippine National Police to consider putting up Chinese complaint desks.
The Bureau of Immigration says Chinese nationals topped the agency’s list of foreigners who were arrested in 2018 for violating immigration laws.
The bureau also said Chinese nationals topped the list of foreign nationals who were prevented from entering the country for being rude and disrespectful to immigration officers.
