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Friday, August 25, 2006
Arrested member of int'l credit card syndicate, a Mafia boy?
By Ruby P. Silubrico
A MEMBER of "Asian Boys", group linked to European Mafia, was arrested for credit card fraud in a police operation at Summer St., Savannah, Oton, Iloilo.
The Police believed so.
This was only after the arrest of a couple who were members of international credit card syndicate three days ago.
The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, Regional Investigation Office, in its operation, arrested Manuel Dumdum IV, 22, a Filipino-American and believed to be a member of "Asian Boys" group linked to European Mafia as their foreign counterpart.
The raid was started at around 6 p.m. through the search warrant issued by Judge Rene Hortillo, branch 31 of the Regional Trial Court for violation of RA 8484 or access devices regulation act of 1998.
Recovered inside Dumdum's house were desk top computer sets, a laptop computer, card reader/encoder, hot stamper/thermal reader, blank PVC cards with magnetic strip, LCD monitor, a 3-in-1 photocopier/scanner/printer, card printer, internet modems, switch boards, telephone base, assorted credit cards, ATM cards, cards of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR 6) and computer hard drives.
The raiding team further recovered an empty sachet with shabu residue believing that Dumdum is also using drugs.
Chief Superintendent Geary Barias, Regional Director of Police Regional Office in Western Visayas said Dumdum has been working as a member of Asian Boys as a counterpart here in the Philippines specifically in Iloilo.
His modus operandi is the same as that of the couple Marilyn Gomez and Andrew de Leon who were arrested on Tuesday.
They would search from the Internet all the information on credit cards and after access, they would imitate the card.
Barias added that this group is responsible in a series of fraudulent withdrawals from several ATM machines in Iloilo City using counterfeit credit/debit cards. The group's targets are allegedly being provided by their European contacts. These accounts are then being used to make cash withdrawals or advances from the banks, ATM machines, send money transfer from the United States of America to Iloilo City and to make store or Internet purchases.
Dumdum is an owner of an Internet café in Iloilo City.
On the other hand, Dumdum's lawyer Amelita Del Rosario-Benedicto has questioned the PRO6 of calling a press conference presenting Dumdum before the Iloilo media.
Benedicto also complained that the lawyer of the CIDG forced Dumdum to wear the orange T-shirt with the printed name CIDG detainee but failed to cite the specific violation of making her client wear such.
(August 25, 2006 issue)
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