Philippine investigators are hunting possible corrupt officials after a huge raid on illegal gambling dens that may also have doubled as online troll factories.
The National Bureau of Investigation confirmed today it is digging deep into whether government figures helped shield the shadowy operations in Zamboanga Sibugay.
NBI Director Melvin Matibag revealed agents are examining links to local officials after officers stormed two sites in the towns of Siay and Alicia on October 2.Nearly 250 foreign nationals – mostly Chinese – were rounded up in what authorities called the biggest crackdown on banned Philippine offshore gaming operators this year.
Officers seized a staggering haul of up to 4,000 mobile phones, mountains of SIM cards, laptops, and specialized tracking devices known as IMSI catchers.
Matibag said the sheer number of gadgets raised suspicions the hubs were not just running illegal online casinos and ‘love scams’ but could also have been pumping out troll content.”We have a continuing investigation and follow-up operations because we are looking into whether government officials were involved,” he told radio station DZRH. “We also suspect these may have been tied to troll farm operations – that is why we are examining everything carefully.”
The simultaneous raids, carried out with the Bureau of Immigration and the Armed Forces, targeted compounds in Barangay Kimos in Siay and Barangay Tandiong Muslim in Alicia.
At one site alone, officers found 78 computer monitors and thousands of phones allegedly used for sophisticated online fraud.Many of those detained were said to be in the country on tourist visas, raising further questions about how such large-scale operations went undetected.
Authorities also rescued people believed to have been victims of forced labour and human trafficking inside the compounds.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr banned all POGO operations in 2024, and a new Anti-POGO law tightened the screws further last year. Still, illegal hubs have continued to spring up across the archipelago, often employing foreign workers in conditions that border on modern slavery.
The Zamboanga Sibugay bust is the largest of 2026 so far, according to immigration officials. It has put fresh pressure on local authorities in the southern province.
Investigators are still verifying the exact nationalities and immigration status of all those arrested, including nationals from Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Myanmar.
Forensic teams are now combing through the seized phones and computers for evidence of scam networks and possible coordinated disinformation campaigns.
Matibag insisted the probe into official involvement remains a top priority as the NBI expands its follow-up operations.
Philippine authorities have vowed to keep hunting down remaining POGO dens, warning that anyone helping them – whether foreign operators or local enablers – will face the full force of the law.
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