The Bureau of Immigration (BI) of the Philippines, following a red notice from Interpol and an arrest warrant issued by a South Korean court, has arrested two South Korean fugitives.
According to Joel Viado, a BI official, the two were arrested in separate locations in Las Piñas City and Bataan Province.
One of the suspects, 37-year-old Nam Sundong, was wanted in South Korea for operating an illegal gambling establishment, violating South Korean gambling laws. The Ulsan District Court in South Korea issued an arrest warrant for him and consequently, a red notice was issued by Interpol.
Currently, both suspects are detained at the BI Bicutan Detention Center, awaiting deportation.
Recently, Philippine authorities also deported 33 Chinese nationals caught engaging in illegal POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators) activities in Pasay City. These suspects were guarded by PAOCC personnel, the Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group, and staff from the Chinese Embassy, and then placed on Philippine Airlines flight PR-336 back to Xiamen, China. This follows the nationwide ban on POGO activities in the Philippines.
In South Korea, gambling remains illegal for local residents except for "small-stakes entertainment" and at government-authorized venues. The Kangwon Land Casino in Jeongseon County, Gangwon Province, is the only legal casino accessible to locals, granted an exemption under the Special Act on Assistance to the Development of Abandoned Mine Areas from the 1990s.
