By Wilnard Bacelonia
MANILA – Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson on Tuesday warned that the nearly PHP950 million casino transactions of the so-called “BGC Boys” or Bulacan Group of Contractors may point to a scheme to launder ill-gotten wealth from anomalous flood control projects.
In his privilege speech, Lacson said cash-to-chips and chips-to-cash records from at least 13 casinos showed billions of pesos in turnover under the names and aliases of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials and contractors.
He noted that the supposed “winnings” could be fabricated by simply exchanging cash for chips, playing minimally, then cashing out to declare the money as gambling gains.
“This is not mere luck. It bears the hallmarks of a money laundering scheme,” Lacson said, citing validated documents from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.
He identified those involved as Brice Ericson Hernandez, officer-in-charge district engineer of DPWH Bulacan 1st District, who allegedly used the alias “Marvin Santos de Guzman” and posted PHP435 million in casino losses; assistant district engineer Jaypee Mendoza, alias “Peejay Castro Asuncion,” with PHP418 million in losses; and former district engineer Henry Alcantara, later OIC assistant regional director for Region 4A, alias “Joseph Castro Villegas,” with PHP36.7 million in losses.
Also named were DPWH Engineer II Arjay Domasig, who reportedly posed as a contractor of SYMS Trading Corp. using the alias “Sandro Bernardo Park” and lost PHP16.9 million, and contractor Edrick San Diego, who recorded PHP42.4 million in losses.
Lacson said his office submitted their names and aliases to the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), stressing that casinos are covered under the amended Anti-Money Laundering Act and should be subject to scrutiny.
He urged AMLC to immediately freeze their bank accounts and pursue prosecution, saying their lavish casino activities, coupled with dubious public works contracts, constitute strong evidence of plunder and other graft offenses. (PNA)
