After successfully shutting down several major online gambling hubs in the Greater Manila area, the Philippine Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PACC) is now shifting its focus to smaller online gambling operations in Zambales and Mindanao.
Gilbert Cruz, head of the PACC, revealed at a press conference that in addition to Zambales and Mindanao, the commission is also closely monitoring online gambling activities in the northern part of Luzon Island.
Cruz stated, "We have received reports of online gambling activities moving to Zambales, especially after we started cracking down on the online gambling parks in the Pampanga province's Porac area. Some operators who escaped are now hiding in Zambales and Mindanao."
He noted that these illegal operators mostly operate in small groups of 20 to 50 people, conducting fraudulent activities in a few rooms. He also disclosed that some "foreigners" are involved in these gangs.
Since July 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered an intensified crackdown on online gambling parks in his State of the Nation Address, linking these activities to criminal and abusive behaviors.
According to Cruz, the PACC has successfully shut down 80% of the 400 monitored online gambling parks, but he emphasized, "These shutdowns do not mean complete eradication."
Cruz added that although large online gambling parks have been closed, smaller-scale illegal activities are still ongoing, which remains a focus of their enforcement efforts. He mentioned that the data on the number of closed online gambling companies will be announced at the end of the year, with plans to further intensify the crackdown.
