The Philippine National Police (PNP) and lawyer Ferdinand Topacio on Sunday stood on opposite sides of the widening hunt for Cassandra Li Ong, with the PNP vowing to track her down through Interpol, even as Topacio claimed the government is using her as a political distraction.

Acting PNP chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the police will intensify coordination with international law enforcement authorities after an Interpol Red Notice was issued for Ong, identified as a documented representative of the controversial Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator Lucky South 99.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had banned POGOs over their links to criminal activities like kidnapping, murder, and human trafficking.

“The PNP will do everything to bring her back to the country so she can face the charges against her,” Nartatez said, adding that the PNP is working closely with the International Criminal Police Organization or Interpol.

“The PNP is committed to delivering justice to the victims of illegal POGO hubs. Those involved in these illegal operations must face the consequences of their actions,” he said.

Topacio, meanwhile, insisted the government is using Ong to divert attention from allegations involving President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s supposed drug use and the flood control scam.

He dismissed the trafficking case against her as “baseless” and “hastily constructed” by the Department of Justice to target certain individuals.

“We confirm that our engagement as the lawyers for... Cassandra Li Ong subsists. While we have not been in communication with our client for some time now, we are bound by law and the tenets of the legal profession to continue extending to her the best legal services we can render under the circumstances,” he said.

Seen in Japan

Ong’s last known location was Japan, according to Dr. Winston John Casio of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission, who said she was successfully tracked during the first quarter of the year.

She was reportedly released by the Quad Comm in December, before any arrest warrant had been issued.

Casio explained that authorities had no power to stop Ong from leaving the country at that time, as she was only under an Immigration Lookout Bulletin Order, which functions merely as a watchlist when no arrest warrant or hold departure order exists.

In May, the Pampanga Regional Trial Court issued a warrant for Ong’s arrest for qualified human trafficking in connection with the alleged illegal operations of Lucky South 99 in Porac, around five months after she supposedly traveled to Japan in January.

Ong had earlier been detained at the Women’s Correctional Facility under a contempt order of the 19th Congress of the Quad Comm. Casio noted that her release followed the expiration of the contempt authority when Congress adjourned.

“When the lifespan of the 19th Congress ended, a person cannot remain imprisoned because the power and life of that Congress that issued the contempt order and commitment order is already dead,” Casio said.

“It is duty bound to release her otherwise maybe they in turn will be charged with arbitrary detention or other charges related to violation of rights of Cassy Ong.”

Casio also said authorities continue to track Ong and her associate Rosalin Baterna, who were once thought to be at odds but reportedly remain in contact. Tracking efforts became more difficult when Ong locked her social media accounts after the warrant was issued in May.

The Interpol arrest notice, issued by Interpol headquarters in France on 17 October, has been transmitted to Philippine authorities through the Philippine Center for Transnational Crime for distribution.

Casio said the government continues to pursue “all legal avenues” to ensure accountability in the POGO cases.