NBI: FrancSwiss extort raps plain harassment

An official of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said yesterday the extortion case lodged by an alleged suspected upline in the international pyramiding syndicate FrancSwiss Investment against several of their agents before the Office of the Ombudsman might have been a form of harassment since there has been no letup in their investigation.

Regional Director Ruel Lasala of the NBI-National Capital Region (NCR) said he has yet to see an actual copy of the complaint lodged against his Executive Officer Rommel Vallejo, Agent 2 Reynold Tabbu, Senior Agent Manny Fayre and Special Investigators Joey Guillen and Michelle Fernandez.

Jomarc dela Paz, 43, filed yesterday charges of kidnapping for ransom, illegal arrest, arbitrary detention, grave coercion, theft, robbery (extortion), violation of Republic Act 7438 (serious irregularity in the performance of their duty), and violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and Ethical Standard for Government Employees against the NBI agents.

Dela Paz was one of the suspects at large mentioned in the syndicated estafa case lodged against Eleazard Castillo, the alleged chief financial adviser of the investment syndicate, before the Department of Justice (DOJ) last July 4.

Lasala said he will stand by his operatives and wait for the Ombudsman’s decision.

“I believe that my men are innocent of the charges. From the start of the investigation, we expected harassment to be sent by FrancSwiss since they are well organized and well funded. Notwithstanding this kind of harassment, the public is reassured that we will not waiver to complete our investigation,” he said.

Since Castillo’s apprehension, hundreds of complainants have either appeared at or called up the NBI-NCR office to either make inquiries or lodge a complaint against their uplines. Just yesterday, some 200 people from Pampanga trooped to the NBI to file a complaint against Castillo.

So far about 200 victims, who have invested about P300 million, have filed complaints.

Lasala said once the number of complainants reaches 300, they will file syndicated estafa charges against the still unidentified recruiters and uplines before the DOJ.

“It is up to Castillo if he is willing to turn witness,” he added.

In his complaint affidavit Dela Paz reported that Castillo convinced him to invest $1,000 in FrancSwiss last May 2.

At around 2 a.m. of July 2, alleged NBI agents picked up Dela Paz and a friend and forced them to board his silver convertible Mercedes Benz with license plate SLK-230 and another vehicle, bearing license plate ZFK-230,  reportedly driven by Tabbu.

He asked permission to call his relatives, but his abductors prevented him and took his valuables, including his wallet containing $2,500. Dela Paz said his abductors took P80,000 cash, a laptop computer, two N70 Nokia cell phones, two N95 cell phones, and documents such as his passport and licenses.

The agents released his companion, who informed Dela Paz’s family about his whereabouts. He was forced to sign a waiver of detention, and was brought to the Manila Pearl Hotel.

His abductors reportedly demanded P2 million, but his  family haggled and reduced the ransom to P500,000. He was later released but was unable to recover his valuables.  – Evelyn Macairan