Immigration officials who were caught with the bundles of cash claimed that they were framed in an entrapment that they plotted for the arrest of Jack Lam
Bureau of Immigration (BI) Deputy Commissioners Michael Robles and Al Argosino claimed that more than corrupt officials, they are pitiful employees who were victimized and framed up in an entrapment plot against Chinese online gambling operator Jack Lam.
Robles and Argosino strongly denied allegations on corruption after accepting P50 million in payoffs from Lam in exchange of the release of the Chinese nationals who worked in the operator’s casino but did not have proper visas.
The Immigration officials claimed that they were trying to entrap the Chinese casino operation but the plan backfired when they were caught holding the bags containing bundles of cash amounting to P50 million.
Both of them alleged that they did not know anything about the payoff and they treat the incident not as a form of bribery but of the “highest evidence of corruption” in the government.
Robles and Argosina turned over P30 million of the P50 million cash in bundles to Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Vitaliano Aquirre II apparently for safekeeping.
According to both Immigration executives, P2 million of the total amount was given to former police official Wally Sombero who served as the middleman and P18 million was allegedly left with with Immigration Intelligence Division head Charles Calima Jr.
Calima was reportedly sharing the money with some individuals including Sombero, Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, Col. Ed Chan and print columnist Ramon Tulfo.
Tulfo’s involvement to the controversy came after he said in his column published earlier that two Immigration commissioners, who are fraternity brothers of President Rodrigo Duterte, asked for P50 million from Jack Lam in exchange for the release of 600 out of 1,316 Chinese casino workers nabbed by BI on November 24 at Lam’s Fontana Leisure Park and Casino in Clark Freeport, Pampanga.
On his part, Tulfo said he is willing to file charges against those who tagged him in the controversy.
