The Judiciary Police (PJ) have busted a gang of five Filipinas for fraud and money laundering, PJ spokesman Cheong Siu Keong announced during a special press conference yesterday.
Cheong identified the quintet, aged between 38 and 49, as cleaners, domestic helpers, and part-time workers. Their surnames are Inocencio, Gutierrez, Calimoso, Gabato, and Bacalso. Cheong added that there are two victims in the case, an elderly man and a middle-aged woman.
According to Cheong, the male victim told the Judiciary Police on March 23 that he met a female netizen, and the two developed an online romance. She claimed she would be sending him expensive gifts, but subsequently demanded that he make payments for various reasons, including fuel tax, customs fines, and money laundering clearance. Cheong said the victim made three transfers, totalling 32,700 patacas, to a designated bank account. After the gifts failed to arrive and the netizen cut contact, the victim realised he had been scammed.
An investigation revealed that Inocencio’s bank account had received the fraudulent funds, as well as 18,567 patacas from the female victim. Cheong noted that the female victim had also fallen prey to an online romance scam, transferring money to the same account at the request of a male netizen.
After receiving the funds, Inocencio split the money and transferred it out, Cheong said. Of this amount, 40,633 patacas were moved to accounts belonging to Gutierrez, Calimoso, and Gabato, before being withdrawn from ATMs by Gutierrez and Bacalso. Inocencio received a 5.0 percent cut of the fraudulent proceeds, with the remainder distributed proportionally among the others.
Cheong said PJ officers arrested the quintet on Tuesday for suspected fraud and money laundering.
The quintet were transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) yesterday to face charges of fraud and money laundering.
According to Article 211 of the Macau Penal Code, fraud is punishable by two to 10 years behind bars. According to Law No.2/2006, money laundering is punishable by imprisonment up to eight years.
Judiciary Police (PJ) officers escort the five hooded fraud and money laundering suspects, all of them local Filipinas, to a PJ van outside the PJ headquarters in Zape yesterday. – Photo: Armindo Neves
