Two Vietnamese girls were rescued from four Chinese men who are allegedly members of a kidnapping gang and a criminal group involving online gambling companies.
According to media reports on August 8, police and SWAT teams in Balangaygem City conducted an operation and arrested the suspects in an apartment in the city.
The authorities seized three guns equipped with silencers and some party drugs, and rescued two Vietnamese hostages.
The investigation revealed that the criminal suspects pretended to be customers of the victims who were engaged in currency exchange business, and forcibly accessed the victims' digital wallets.
The victims stated, "During her stay at the suspect's residence, they violated her, pointed a gun at her, held a knife to her body and forced her to transfer money."
The suspects also stole the victims' money and jewelry, and forced her relatives to buy it back.
The Chief of Police in the capital region, Major General Fuxi Milensio Natatez, noted: "They were able to steal jewelry and withdraw about 20 million pesos. Their modus operandi is kidnapping. Particularly targeting officials and employees of the online gambling industry (POGO), especially Vietnamese, Cambodians, or Chinese."
Another victim managed to escape and sought help.
It is alleged that these suspects are members of a criminal group that is a "pillar" of the online gambling company, with the task of kidnapping foreigners.
The suspects claimed that they have been working for online gambling companies in the Philippines for the past three years and they did not own the guns seized during the operation.
Further investigation revealed that the suspects committed four rape and kidnapping cases in the southern part of Metro Manila, and one of them is wanted in China for rape, murder, kidnapping, human trafficking, and extortion.
The authorities are continuing to search for the suspect who successfully escaped and the other members of the criminal gang.
