LIN JIN: THE ‘POGO KING’ QUADCOMM WON’T TOUCH?
AS the special ‘Quadcomm’ of Congress entered its 12th hearing since it started in August, one Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) that it has yet to summon is Mr. Lin Jin, commonly known in the Fil-Chinese community as ‘Richard Lim.’
The Quadcomm is an ‘extraordinary committee’ of Congress composed of four standing House Committees—Dangerous Drugs under Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers; Public Accounts, under Abang Lingkod Partylist Rep. Joseph ‘Caraps’ Paduano; Human Rights under Manila 6th district Rep. Bienvenido ‘Benny’ Abante; and, Public Order and Safety, under Sta. Rosa, Laguna, Rep. Daniel ‘Dan’ Fernandez.
Its purpose is to investigate the link between POGOs and the rise of crimes that resulted to extrajudicial killing, money laundering, drug smuggling and human trafficking, among others, during the Duterte administration, when POGOs are at their peak in the country.
Lin is currently out on bail and is undergoing trial at a court in Metro Manila for grave coercion after one of his business partners in the POGO business found the courage to sue him for kidnapping for ransom in 2023, one year after his harrowing experience (the Justice Department, however, downgraded the case to grave coercion—Editor).
In his narration, the victim, a Chinese national, said that as a condition for his release in September 2022, he paid Lin P100 million plus the control of his company in exchange for his life and that of his family, a fact attested to by his brother who raised the money to secure his release.
Among the POGOs being investigated by the Quadcomm is ‘Xionwei Technology,’ one of the many businesses established by Michael Yang, the former economic adviser of Pres. Rodrigo Duterte. Yang is also suspected of involvement in the illegal drugs trade.
Yang gained prominence during the ‘pandemic years’ of 2020 – 2021, after he was tagged in the so-called ‘Pharmally Scandal’ investigated by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee involving billions of pesos in alleged ‘overpriced’ medical supplies paid by the government.
Surprisingly, the Quadcomm has only focused its attention on the role of Rose Nono Lin and her husband, Lin Weixiong or ‘Allan Lim,’ in the operations of Xionwei, which is also owned by Yang thru ‘Paili Holdings Corporation.’
Lin Jin’s victim said that it was Yang who convinced him to “invest” in the POGO business during a visit in Manila using the license of Xionwei Technology and which he did by putting up ‘Big Emperor Technology.’
He added that after Yang got embroiled in the Pharmally Scandal, Yang turned over control of Xionwei Technology, not to Rose Nono Lin, but to Lin Jin/Richard Lim. The victim said from thereon, Yang told him that he would only have to deal with Lin Jin.
Last September 19, Yang Jian Xin, aka, ‘Tony Yang, ‘Tony Lim’ and ‘Antonio Mahistrado,’ the elder brother of Michael Yang, was arrested by authorities for being an ‘undesirable alien’ after landing in Manila from Cagayan de Oro City.
During his appearance in the Senate, no senator questioned him about his relationship with Lin Jin, despite their being known as “close friends” in the Fil-Chinese community; Lin Jin and Tony Yang were frequently together in Cagayan de Oro City, sources said.
At the time that Lin Jin is already running the show at Xionwei, a Senate investigation on September 15, 2022 found that Xionwei is among three POGO companies involved in kidnap-for-ransom (KFR) activities.
PCol. Rodolfo Castil, chief of the Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) testified that Xionwei is involved in at least five KFR cases, according to media reports of the hearing.
Incidentally, the victim said in his affidavit that he was released by Lin Jin’s henchmen from the police on September 14, a day before the Senate probe and a week after the P100 million ransom was delivered to Lin Jin’s house in Makati.
Despite these past events and the obvious connection between Michael Yang and Lin Jin, however, he remains beyond questioning by the Quadcomm and the Senate.
The question is why?
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