BATASAN HILLS, Quezon City — Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) deputy director for Crimes, Investigation and Enforcement Atty. Adrian Arpon has confirmed that a formal complaint has yet to be filed regarding Katherine Cassandra Ong’s ownership of Whirlwind Corporation that allegedly leased the property where Lucky South 99 put up its illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) hub in Pampanga.

Despite this though, the AMLC official disclosed that a complaint has already been filed against Ong but only in connection with another POGO hub in Bamban town in Tarlac.

For Whirlwind, Arpon added, a bank inquiry and freeze might be filed this week or the following week.

Earlier in the House Quad Committee hearing on illegal POGO operating in the country, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian expressed puzzlement over how the 24-year-old Ong became a majority shareholder of a company that leased land to a POGO hub in Porac, Pampanga.

Records showed that Ong owns a 58 percent stake in Whirlwind Corporation that leased land to Lucky South 99, which was raided by authorities last June.

Gatchalian presented a Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) certification that verified Ong has no record of tax payments.

“So ang tanong namin ngayon, saan mo nakuha yang capital para ilagay ditosa Whirlwind Corporation na bumili ng halos 10 hectares ng lupa sa Porac, Pampanga nag kahalaga ng ₱1.2 billion,” the senator queried.

“So kung ang portion mo is 58 percent, more or less ang dapat mong ilinabas ay about ₱600 million. So wala kang tax return, 19-years-old ka ng pumasok dito. So ang tanong namin saan nanggaling iyong pera mo?” Gatchalian reiterated.

However, despite having confirmed that when she was 19 years old, she also started working as a representative of the Lucky South 99 from 2019 to 2023, Ong refused to answer Gatchalian’s question, repeatedly invoking her right against self-incrimination.

In reaction to Ong’s continued refusal to answer his queries, Gatchalian said he would move to cite her for contempt at a proper time.