Philippines arrests 244 in biggest POGO bust of 2026 in Mindanao scam-hub raids

Philippine authorities have arrested 244 foreign nationals, most of them Chinese, in what the Bureau of Immigration (BI) described as the country’s largest crackdown on illegal online gaming operators this year.

The BI Intelligence Division, together with the National Bureau of Investigation and the Armed Forces of the Philippines, carried out simultaneous raids on Friday at two addresses in Zamboanga Sibugay, in the southern region of Mindanao — Barangay Kimos in Siay and Barangay Tandiong Muslim in Alicia, the bureau said in a statement released late Saturday.

At the Siay site, officers apprehended 113 foreign nationals: 110 Chinese nationals, two Cambodians and one Hong Kong national. Another 131 foreigners were arrested at the Alicia site — mostly Chinese, along with nationals from Malaysia, Indonesia and Myanmar. The identities and nationalities of those detained are still being verified.

The bureau said officers recovered large quantities of computer equipment, including 78 computer monitors, roughly 3,000 mobile phones, laptops and SIM cards from the Casa de Coco Pension House compound — devices it said were believed to have been used for online scams, pointing to an organised illegal operation.

Manila banned Philippine offshore gaming operators, known as POGOs, in 2024 on the grounds that organised crime groups used them as cover for human trafficking, money laundering, online fraud, kidnappings and murder. The operations form part of enforcement of Executive Order No. 74 and the Anti-POGO Act of 2025.

“The Bureau of Immigration is firmly implementing the government’s policy against illegal POGO operations. We will continue to enforce our immigration laws against foreign nationals who violate the conditions of their stay and ensure that the Philippines is not used as a base for illegal activities,” BI Commissioner Joel Anthony M. Viado said.

The government is investigating possible human-trafficking offences arising from the raids, while the rest of those arrested will face deportation proceedings and be blacklisted from re-entering the country, the bureau said. AFP said the Chinese embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to its request for comment.

Sources: https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/regions/1004701/244-mostly-chinese-pogo-workers-arrested-in-zamboanga-sibugay/story/ | https://immigration.gov.ph/largest-pogo-bust-of-2026-244-foreign-nationals-arrested-by-bureau-of-immigration-in-massive-zamboanga-sibugay-pogo-crackdown/ | https://qa.philstar.com/headlines/2026/10/04/2560881/244-mostly-chinese-workers-arrested-largest-2026-pogo-bust