Bangladesh Ambassador to the Philippines John Gomes (2nd left) talks to Senator Teofisto Guingona III on Tuesday during the Senate hearing on the $81-million money laundering heist. Hackers transferred the amount last February from the Bangladesh central bank to the RCBC Jupiter branch in Makati, after which it was laundered in casinos.(MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – Former senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson revealed on Wednesday that casino junket operator Kim Wong came to him for advice before facing the Senate.
Lacson also said Wong, who has been a long-time friend, sought his counsel before returning the P450-million earnings he had from a casino player.
“Sabi ko ‘gusto mo bang mag-explain? Lalapit kita sa isa o dalawang senador, but you must assure me that you’re going to tell all. Sabihin mo lahat ng totoo, hindi pwedeng may itatago ka; mapapahiya ako dun sa lalapitan natin. Tell all.’”
Wong assured Lacson that he will reveal the whole truth, so he faced the Senate eventually.
The junket operator also returned $4-million of the dirty money in his junket to the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) and contemplated returning the P450-million his player paid him.
“Sabi ko, ganito lang ang analogy diyan: naglabas ka ng sarili mong pera, bumili ka ng sasakyan. Nagkataon, carnapped pala. Anong gagawin mo? Itatago mo yung sasakyan? Isauli mo.”
Wong was given the same advice by his children and was promised their support in raising the P450-million, but another lawyer told him not to return the money because it is technically his earnings.
“That’s legal [advice]; humingi ka sa’kin ng advice, I’m not a lawyer, advice ko sa’yo moral,” he told Wong.
Lacson does not attribute his friend’s brazenness to the exclusion of casinos to the Anti-Money Laundering Law (AMLA), but to his obliviousness to the money’s origin.
He said, “ang problema, hindi niya naman alam na ‘yung source illegal. Pero syempre, alam niya rin na hindi kasama yung casino winnings or casino operations sa money laundering — syempre, free-flowing yung pera; hindi kailangang ma-report.”
Should he be elected, Lacson said he will re-file the amendments to AMLA that he has previously submitted but was taken down in the plenary — the inclusion of casinos, real estate, artworks, and attorney’s fees in the covered institutions of the law.
Lacson is currently included in the senatorial slate of the Liberal Party. (MNS)