Gov’t to ensure Amalilio return

MANILA, Philippines - Surprised by the Malaysian authorities’ decision stopping the deportation of wanted Aman Futures Group Inc. head Manuel Amalilio, Malacañang said yesterday it would work to ensure his return to the Philippines so he could face charges.

The Palace gave the assurance after a team from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) tasked to fetch Amalilio from Malaysia returned home empty-handed Friday night.

A high-ranking official of Malaysia, said to be related to Amalilio, reportedly prevented the NBI agents from bringing the accused back to the Philippines because of some issues regarding his citizenship.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said proper coordination with Malaysia was done by concerned agencies to facilitate the return of Amalilio, the principal suspect in the P12-billion investment scam that defrauded at least 15,000 residents of Mindanao and the Visayas.

“We don’t know at this point the basis for stopping the return (of Amalilio). It was a surprise to everyone,” Valte said.

She said the authorities had the proper documents to ensure Amalilio’s return and that it would be up to the concerned agencies to determine whether a high-level negotiation is needed for his return and for the freezing of his bank accounts in the country.

She gave assurance there were steps being taken to ensure that the alleged scam boss would be tried under Philippine laws.

Senior Superintendent Carlo Collado, an attaché of the Philippine National Police (PNP) to Malaysia, said a four-man team from the NBI flew to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia Thursday morning to fetch Amalilio, who was arrested in Ranao district in Sabah Tuesday for using a fake Malaysian passport.

The team was about to board a Cebu Pacific flight bound for Manila when a senior representative from the Malaysian Royal Police arrived at the airport and prevented Amalilio from leaving.

Interior Secretary Mar Roxas was baffled why the Malaysian authorities would stop Amalilio’s deportation when there was prior and full coordination with the royal police.

He said officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) are currently coordinating with their Malaysian counterparts to have Amalilio sent back to the Philippines to face the multibillion-peso syndicated estafa cases filed against him.

The DFA has instructed Philippine ambassador to Kuala Lumpur Ed Malaya to determine the reason for the sudden turn of events, and to work out Amalilio’s return.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said the NBI men had with them complete deportation documents and evidence that showed Amalilio is a Filipino.

Collado said the Sabah officials gave assurance that Amalilio would be given to the Philippine authorities in due time.

“Let’s just give them time to settle things first, so there would be no more problem when we return to Malaysia to fetch him,” he said.

The Malaysian authorities even asked the cameraman of ABS-CBN Channel 2 to delete the footages taken at the Kota Kinabalu airport showing a Sabah official talking to Collado.

“There’s nothing I can do but obey, or else they might mob us,” the cameraman said in Filipino.

The Sabah official reportedly told Collado that the citizenship of Amalilio remains unclear, and that he is a Malaysian, not a Filipino. He claimed there was no legal basis for Amalilio’s deportation because there was no extradition treaty between the two countries.

Roxas said the Philippine government would most likely invoke the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty between the Philippines and Malaysia to have Amalilio deported.

He said Philippine authorities could cite as basis for Amalilio’s deportation his being a Filipino citizen who committed a crime and was being sought by law to face justice.

Malaysia is a federal constituted monarchy. However, its 13 states exercise autonomy from that of the central government. Sabah and Sarawak have separate immigration policies and controls.

Roxas expressed optimism that Amalilio would be repatriated soon.

“We have good relations with Malaysia. The repatriation is now under process. I don’t see any reason why this would strain our good relations with Malaysia. Just what I said, Amalilio will be repatriated back for him to face his thousands of accusers before the court,” Roxas said.

He gave assurance that the accused is currently under the custody of the Malaysian Royal Police and is not free to roam around.

‘Don’t take law into your hands’

Philippine National Police chief Director General Alan Purisima, meanwhile, reiterated his call to thousands of victims of the Aman scam not to take the law into their hands.

Purisima aired the appeal amid reports that the victims were threatening to harm Amalilio once he sets foot in the country.

“Don’t harm him. Let the law take its course, otherwise you might end up in jail ahead of him,” he said.

Despite the appeal, Purisima is not taking any chances as he ordered a security plan laid out to ensure the safety of Amalilio.

Sources at the NBI told The STAR that they are still puzzled how Amalilio managed to “slip out” of the custody of Philippine authorities just minutes before the Cebu Pacific flight took off from the Malaysian airport.

He said the NBI team and Collado were at the holding area waiting for the boarding call when the Malaysian police arrived 10 minutes before 6:10 p.m. boarding time.

“There was argument at the holding area between the NBI agents and the Malaysian police. The flight was delayed. Amalilio was in handcuffs. He was reportedly in a bonnet or cap while at the boarding area, but was not wearing bullet-proof vest,” said the source.

The source said the Malaysian police were not armed while inside the airport but he was not sure if there were police outside or how many were there.

“The Malaysian authorities did not say why they prevented Amalilio from boarding the plane,” he added.

The source said Amalilio was already turned over to the NBI agents, and travel arrangements were already confirmed, and yet they were not able to take him back to answer the charges.

Amalilio purportedly duped thousands of residents of Pagadian and other cities in Mindanao and the Visayas to invest their money in his firm, with a promise that it would earn huge profits within a short period of time. When the funds ran out, he fled to Malaysia.

Earlier, nine other accused, all incorporators of Aman, surrendered to the NBI. They are currently detained at the NBI jail. – Aurea Calica, Rudy Santos, Pia Lee-Brago, Sandy Araneta, Jaime Laude, Mike Frialde