Staff Reporter :The Philippines Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) on Tuesday filed a criminal case against two Chinese businessmen who were allegedly involved in laundering $81 million stolen fund by mysterious computer hackers through the country’s financial system from the central bank of Bangladesh.In a complaint filed in the Department of Justice (DOJ), the AMLC accused Chinese casino junket operator Xu Weikang and Cagayan-based restaurateur Kam Sin Wong, also known as Kim Wong, of money laundering, after tracing to their personal accounts the money stolen from the Bangladesh Bank’s accounts in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, reports Philippine Daily Inquirer.An AMLC investigation found that the money was wired to four accounts under fictitious names in the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) branch on Jupiter Street, Makati City.The accounts, opened on May 15, 2015, on Wong’s referral to branch manager Maia Santos-Deguito, saw activity only last month, when the accounts were virtually emptied and fanned out to several banks.RCBC fired Deguito and her deputy, Angela Torres, Tuesday.”Other branch and bank officials are expected to be meted out various sanctions ranging from termination to suspension in the coming days when the internal investigation is expected to be completed,” the bank said in a statement issued by RCBC head of legal and regulatory affairs Maria Cecilla Fernandez-Estavillo.RCBC said Deguito and Torres broke the rules and facilitated the laundering of the money stolen from Bangladesh Bank.”Appropriate charges will be filed in court against Deguito and Torres by next week,” Estavillo said.The AMLC, in its nine-page complaint, said “all elements [of money laundering] are present in this case,” scoring Xu and Wong for taking the money while aware that the funds were “proceeds of unlawful activities.”Probable causeThe AMLC Compliance and Investigation Group said “probable cause” exists that the two had committed money laundering, “having transacted and/or converted, transferred, moved, acquired, possessed or used proceeds of an unlawful activity.”The AMLC cited testimonies during the Senate blue ribbon committee investigation last week where witnesses said a total of $59.349 million was transferred to several accounts under Xu’s name.Based on the testimony of a representative from remittance firm PhilRem (unnamed in the complaint), a total of $30.565 million-or $18 million and 600 million pesos-was “personally delivered” to Xu in several tranches from February 5 to 13.A separate amount of 1.374 billion pesos, or $28.784 million, was wired to the account of Bloomberry Resorts and Hotel Inc., which operates the plush Solaire Resort Casino in Parañaque City, from February 5 to 11.The AMLC said Solaire corporate secretary Silverio Tan confirmed at the Senate that the amount “was for the account of Xu as the registered casino junket operator.”It was eventually “converted into nonnegotiable chips issued to regular casino players,” Tan told the senators, according to the AMLC.Wong’s role Philrem, meanwhile, transferred 1 billion pesos, or $21.6 million, to Wong, through the Philippine National Bank account of his business, Eastern Hawaii Leisure Co. Ltd., the AMLC said.Wong is president and general manager of the company, which was “organised” in Hong Kong but operates at the Cagayan Economic Processing Zone.Of the amount, Wong moved 900.475 million pesos to his personal account, and then withdrew 400 million pesos, the AMLC said. The account has since been frozen.”The foregoing circumstances would show that respondent Wong knew or should have known that the funds that were remitted/transferred to [several] accounts … were part of the stolen funds from Bangladesh Bank, and are therefore proceeds of unlawful activities,” the AMLC said.The council said Xu committed the same offense, as he “remains to be in possession of the stolen funds” even while reports about the money laundering “have been all over the newspapers and are now subject of ongoing Senate blue ribbon committee hearings.”Earlier this month, the AMLC filed money-laundering charges against Deguito for her role in opening the four bank accounts to which the stolen money was wired by the hackers.
