By Jet Antolin
THE siblings Yang, Michael, a former economic adviser to ex-president Rodrigo Duterte, and Tony, who was recently arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), are involved in a massive crime syndicate, according to Senator Risa Hontiveros.
In a statement, Hontiveros said that the Yang siblings are all part of a “massive crime syndicate” that is their family business, without specifying the type of business.
Tony was previously arrested at NAIA on September 19 after being deemed an undesirable alien.
“The arrest of Tony Yang, who is wanted in China for financial scamming, will pave the way for establishing his connections to POGOs — just like his brothers Michael and Hongjiang,” Hontiveros said.
“It is much clearer now that their family business is a massive crime syndicate that has operated in the country for far too long and has victimized far too many,” the senator emphasized.
Hontiveros also suspects that the Yang siblings are involved in the operations of illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators.
The elder Yang denied the allegation of his involvement in POGOs through his lawyer Raymond Fortun last July.
“There is no respect for due process or rules of procedures that can be found in regular courts that would guarantee a person’s rights to be deemed innocent. Whether they admit it or not, the legislators are worse than learned prosecutors instead of fact-finding in aid of legislation,” Fortun said in a statement.
Hontiveros mentioned during a previous hearing that Hongjing Yang has a joint bank account with Hongsheng incorporator Yu Zheng Can and is said to be directly involved with Baofu Land Development Inc., owned by dismissed Mayor Alice Guo, which leased a vast property in Bamban, Tarlac to a POGO.
Hontiveros also mentioned that Hongjing is an incorporator in the Philippine Fullwin Group of Companies with Gerald Cruz as the corporate secretary.
It was also discovered that Cruz is also the corporate secretary of Pharmally Biological, a company that is a partner of Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation, which is implicated in the anomalous purchase of COVID-19 medical supplies.
Michael Yang is the president of Fullwin and a partner in Pharmally Biological.
“It is unlikely that the Yang siblings are just coincidentally involved in the same activities. There are indications that corporate layering and the crimes they committed through these entities may be part of their modus operandi,” Hontiveros said.
