It has been revealed that Duanren Wu, the alleged top boss of the raided Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub in Porac, Pampanga, was a former police officer in China with a troubling criminal record.
This information was confirmed by Cassandra Li Ong, a stakeholder of Whirlwind Corporation and representative of the POGO hub Lucky South 99, during questioning by Surigao del Norte 2nd District Representative Robert Ace Barbers, chair of the Committee on Dangerous Drugs.
The revelation occurred at the fourth joint public hearing of the House Quad Committee on Wednesday.
Rep. Barbers confronted Ong with intelligence reports that her former boss, Duanren Wu, had numerous bad records in China. Ong, however, claimed that she was unaware of her boss’s criminal background.
Ong had previously stated that Duanren Wu was a close friend of her mother and that she considered him her godfather.
Barbers also grilled Ong about the source of the investment funds used by her partners to construct POGO buildings in Porac.
He directly asked if the money might have come from illegal activities such as drug trafficking or money laundering. Ong firmly denied this, assuring the committee that the funds were legitimate.
During the hearing, Ong was excused after experiencing dizziness due to a drop in her blood pressure to 80/40, a possible sign of hypotension according to the House medical staff.
Lawmakers believe that Ong’s testimonies are crucial in establishing that Whirlwind Corporation and Lucky South 99 are essentially the same company.
A previous resource person, Stephanie Mascarenas, who had worked for Ong at Whirlwind Corporation, identified Duanren Wu as the head of both Whirlwind and Lucky South 99.
Mascarenas also confirmed that Whirlwind is a real estate company that leased buildings to Lucky South 99, which was found to be operating POGOs.