Nearly 500 foreign POGO workers were arrested in the Philippines as authorities intensified their crackdown on the now-illegal industry.
Police authorities in the Philippines have rounded up around 500 foreigners as Immigration officials intensified its crackdown on offshore gaming workers (POGO) to kick off the first couple of weeks of 2025.
Bureau of Immigration Spokesperson Dana Sandoval shared this during a noontime interview with local news channel ANC last January 20, 2025.
“I think we're almost close to 500, the other 1 is 29 and 39 so we're close to 500 in less than 2 weeks. This is not the end of the arrests because we're intent on [cracking down against] these illegal online gambling people who have overstayed already,” Sandoval said.
The number includes those 32 foreigners arrested during the authorities’ most recent anti-POGO operation in Paranaque, over 29 arrested in a “guerilla-like” POGO hub in Cavite, and over 400 arrested during the first operation of the year, also conducted in Paranaque City.
As President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s deadline for POGOs to cease operations lapsed, law enforcers announced they were going to hunt down some 21,000 POGO workers who remain in hiding around the country.
Inside the scam hub
As mentioned in local reports over the weekend, these suspects were accused of posing as regular people on dating apps, targeting Western men. The scams even went as far as setting up fake studios and house setups within the facility.
Once victims deposited money, the scammers would cut off contact and move on to the next target.
“They were actually set up inside the area they were pretending to be in a room and house which they use when they do webcams or livestreaming to make their victims believe that they are just regular people,” Sandoval explained. “What they usually do is that they pretend to be in a dating app, look for western men and later would entice their victims to invest in cryptocurrency which usually turn out to be fake.”
Authorities found numerous laptops, hundreds of cellphones, messenger applications, multiple accounts, beds, and the aforementioned studio setups. The operation occupied at least two floors of a mixed-use building, raising questions about the building owners' knowledge of the illegal activities.
The BI is now investigating the role of the building owners and those who leased the space.
“Part of the investigation is the owners or the ones who booked the facilities to see if they have liabilities in these,” Sandoval stated. “If they knowingly rented these to foreign nationals, then they will definitely be sued for harboring illegal aliens which is a violation of the Philippine immigration act.”
Read related article: Hunt On For 21k POGO Workers Who “Refuse” To Be Deported
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