Metro Manila, Philippines – The passports of former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque and dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo’s alleged associate, Cassandra Li Ong, have been canceled six months after a court ordered their arrest over human trafficking charges linked to illegal offshore gaming operations.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) confirmed the cancellation on Monday, Nov. 24, citing an order from the Pasig Regional Trial Court Branch 157, which declared the two as fugitives.
The court also canceled the passports of three co-accused – Ronelyn Baterna, Dennis Cunanan, and Mercides Peralta Macabasa. All five were linked to Lucky South 99, an illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) in Porac, Pampanga that was found engaged in trafficking and forced labor.
Roque was a legal counsel for Lucky South 99, while Ong was its authorized representative.
“Any accused whose passport has been cancelled is barred from leaving the country and serves as a restriction to his/her constitutional right to travel,” DOJ spokesperson Polo Martinez explained.
“If they are in another country, their movement will necessarily now be limited as they will no longer be able to exit the foreign country’s borders, much less travel to another State,” he added.
Martinez said they may also face deportation proceedings abroad without valid passports.
Roque, former spokesperson of ex-president Rodrigo Duterte, left the country last year reportedly around the time the House of Representatives cited him in contempt and ordered his arrest for skipping hearings on illegal POGOs.
In a statement on Tuesday, Nov. 25, Roque said he will appeal the passport cancellation.
“While we respect the decision of the Pasig City Regional Trial Court, I disagree with the court’s reasoning that I have ‘not given any acceptable reason why I remain outside of the Philippines,’” Roque said on social media.
“I am seeking asylum in the Netherlands because of my political beliefs as an outspoken Duterte ally and the right to seek asylum is a recognized human right,” he added.
Roque was spotted multiple times outside the International Criminal Court detention facility in The Hague, Netherlands, where Duterte has been detained for charges of crimes against humanity for murder in relation to his bloody drug war.
Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Ty, however, said court orders on passport cancellation are “final and executory” and can be immediately implemented by the Department of Foreign Affairs.
₱1-M reward for info on Ong
Meanwhile, the DOJ has offered a ₱1-million bounty for information that could lead to the arrest of Ong, admitting to challenges in locating her.
“We confirm that we’re having difficulty. The reward is basically crowdsourcing… we need more info,” Justice Acting Secretary Fredderick Vida said.
He acknowledged information from the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission that Ong was last tracked in Japan.
Ong was previously detained at the House of Representatives and later at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City, but was released at the end of 2024 after Congress lifted its contempt order.
Ong is also believed to be an associate of Guo, although she had said she is only the girlfriend of Guo’s brother, Wesley. She fled the country amid the POGO controversy last year, until she and Guo’s sister, Shiela, were arrested in August 2024 in Indonesia. Guo was apprehended later and is now facing up to 40 years in prison for human trafficking.
