PNP Creates Task Force to Combat Illegal POGO Operations

PNP Forms Special Task Force to Tackle Illegal POGO Operations Amid Industry Scrutiny

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has set up a special task force to crack down on illegal POGO operations, responding to increasing calls to shut down the offshore gaming industry entirely.

Just days after PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco stated that regulation is better than prohibition, PNP Chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil announced the formation of the task force, as reported by PhilStar.

“We created a special task force to collaborate with other agencies and address the problem,” Marbil said during the launch of the task force, named Special Task Force Skinner.

According to PhilStar, the task force is divided into three branches—administration, intelligence, and operations—and includes contributions from various PNP units, such as the Directorate for Operations, the Anti-Cybercrime Group, the Anti-Kidnapping Group, and others.

“Through STF Skimmer, the PNP will dismantle illegal POGOs by gathering intelligence, conducting coordinated law enforcement operations, and taking legal action to uphold the law, protect vulnerable individuals, and safeguard national security,” said Brig. Gen. Nicolas Salvador.

Illegal POGOs have been under scrutiny following recent raids on two compounds in Tarlac and Pampanga, which uncovered evidence of human trafficking and other criminal activities. In Tarlac, former Bamban Mayor Alice Guo is accused of secretly supporting the POGO’s efforts to avoid detection.

Meanwhile, PAGCOR has been working to clean up the industry by rebranding POGOs as Internet Gaming Licensees (IGLs) and requiring all existing licensees to undergo a thorough relicensing process. This has reduced the number of licensed IGLs from a peak of 298 to just 43.

Source: IAG