The Judiciary Police arrested a Filipino for a 1.14 million pataca job scam on Monday, PJ spokesman Cheong Siu Keong said during a special press conference yesterday.
Cheong identified the suspect as a 30-year-old non-resident-worker (NRWs) surnamed Reganit, who told police that he works as a cleaner. The second suspect in the case was still at large at the time of yesterday’s special press conference about the case, Cheong said.
According to Cheong, between Sunday and Monday, 55 Filipinos went to the PJ headquarters and reported that they had been defrauded by Reganit and lost between 15,000 and 28,000 patacas each, totalling 1.14 million patacas.
Under questioning, Cheong said, PJ officers revealed that since June, the victims were made to believe via social media that Reganit could assist them in securing work in Macau.
Reganit claimed in his social media posts that he and his partner (the second suspect) were collaborating with a recruitment agency in Macau to arrange positions for cleaners and security guards, emphasising that no interviews or medical examinations were required.
Cheong said that the victims, having no reason to suspect foul play as Reganit “revealed” the name of the recruitment agency in his posts, travelled to Macau to meet Reganit. During the meetings, Reganit collected between 15,000 and 28,000 patacas from each victim along with their identity documents, after which he issued them with a “receipt”, telling them to wait patiently. As he subsequently refused to communicate with the victims or return the money, finally they reported the matter to the Judiciary Police.
According to Cheong, PJ officers arrested Reganit in Areia Preta, while the second suspect had left Macau last week. The officers seized a bunch of receipts and a laptop containing the victims’ particulars. The recruitment agency told the Judiciary Police that the two suspects never worked for it, Cheong said.
Reganit was transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) yesterday, facing a fraud charge.
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the job scam suspect surnamed Reganit to a PJ van outside the PJ headquarters in Zape yesterday. – Photo: Armindo Neves
