Women Coerced to Provide Sexual Services for POGO Clients by Chinese National

7 Vietnamese women rescued from “POGO-run prostitution den” in Pasay.

Seven Vietnamese women were rescued in Pasay City on October 22, 2024, during an anti-human trafficking operation targeting an alleged prostitution den.

The women, all in their 20s, were reportedly being coerced into providing sexual services for clients working in Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs), police said. The suspect, Zhao Xing, a 31-year-old Chinese national, was arrested during the operation conducted in a condo unit in Barangay 86, according to a Philippine Daily Inquirer report.

According to intelligence reports, the women were being exploited for prostitution, catering primarily to POGO workers.

The victims were in the country on tourist visas, according to the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), which carried out the raid. The suspect will be facing anti-trafficking raps.

“The successful police operation resulted in the safe extraction of the seven Vietnamese nationals and the apprehension of the suspect, who will face charges under Republic Act No. 10364, the expanded anti-trafficking law,” said NCRPO director Maj. Gen. Sidney Sultan Hernia.

The NCRPO’s Regional Intelligence Division, the Pasay City Social Welfare and Development Department, the Department of Justice’s Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, the Women and Children Protection Center, the Regional Mobile Force Battalion, and the Pasay City Police Station were all involved in the operation.

Read related article: Philippine Gaming Operators Involved in Prostitution Ring