RCBC –Jupiter Branch Manager Maia Santos-Deguito takes an oath before testifying during a Senate hearing on the US$81 million money-laundering scandal, at the Philippines Senate on Tuesday. Deguito was summoned to shed light on the Philippines’ biggest anti-money laundering case involving money stolen from the central bank of Bangladesh.(MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – Key personalities involved in the $81-million money laundering scheme on Tuesday allowed a Senate panel to access their phone records in confirming how the funds stolen from the Bangladesh Bank account in New York ended up in casinos, high rollers, and junket operators.
Specifically, the Senate blue ribbon committee is interested in looking into the phone records of former Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Jupiter branch manager Maia Santos-Deguito, PhilRem Service Corp. president Salud Bautista and PhilRem treasurer Michael “Concon” Bautista.
The committee intends to examine their phone records from February 5 to 13 – the days when cash deliveries were made by PhilRem to one Weikang Xu.
During the hearing, Sen. Paolo Benigno Aquino IV asked Deguito, Wong, and Michael and Salud Bautista to write each other’s numbers on paper.
Before the committee made decided to check their phone records, PhilRem executives butted heads with Deguito and Wong on how the money transfers were carried out.
The Bautistas claimed that they informed Deguito on how much money they could raise on a certain day, which the former bank manager denied.
“For the cash deliveries, wala akong instructions. I would like to believe na derecho na sila (PhilRem and Wong, Xu) na nag-usap,” Deguito said.
Wong said Deguito never called her about the cash deliveries.
The casino junket operator also said Michael Bautista called him up to pick up cash from the latter’s residence on February 9.
Michael denied calling Wong about any of the transactions.(MNS)