Senate Deputy Majority Leader Risa Hontiveros called on authorities to intensify efforts to locate and bring back Cassandra Li Ong, the documented representative of the controversial POGO firm Lucky South 99, after officials confirmed that her last known location was in Japan. Hontiveros stressed that Ong must not escape accountability, emphasizing that she is facing qualified human trafficking charges, not a minor offense, and therefore should not be allowed to freely leave the country. Hontiveros urged the government to cancel Ong’s passport, along with those of her alleged accomplices, arguing that she is not a tourist but an individual facing serious criminal allegations. Hontiveros reiterated the importance of active coordination with international law enforcement to ensure Ong’s return and her eventual prosecution. Her earlier detention stemmed from a contempt order by the House Quad Committee, but she was later released after the 19th Congress ended, as the authority behind the contempt citation had expired. The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) explained that without an arrest warrant at the time, the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) was legally required to release her. Despite attempts to challenge her indictment, the Court of Appeals dismissed Ong’s petition against the DOJ’s resolution affirming charges against her. Her statement came after the PAOCC revealed that Ong managed to leave detention at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong and has since become “at large.” Ong has an active arrest warrant issued by a Pampanga court in May for qualified human trafficking related to the suspected scam hub operations of Lucky South 99.
