P3-M phone hacking equipment seized

Joint operatives of the Eastern Police District (EPD) and the Parañaque City police confiscated last Wednesday P3 million worth of telephone hacking devices being used by a syndicate to illegally divert overseas calls.

Superintendent Alfredo Valdez, Parañaque City police Intelligence Division chief, said they served the search warrant issued by Judge Francisco Mendiola of Pasay City Regional Trial Court Branch 115, against Abegail Razon-Alvarez and Vernon Razon for theft and unauthorized connection.

In an operation that began at 9 p.m. and ended at midnight, the composite team stormed the houses at 38 Indonesia street and 17 Dominic de Savio street both in Better Living Subdivision, Barangay don Bosco. The suspects allegedly ran two businesses called Experto Philippines and Experts Enterprises.

However, when police arrived at the rented homes two suspects were already gone. They have been renting the houses for less than a year.

One of the EPD operatives said that in the house on Indonesia street, the equipment have already been set-up in one of the rooms.

Superintendent Gilbert Cruz, EPD-Police Community Relations chief, said the Philippine Long Distance Co. sought their assistance in neutralizing the syndicate. "I was told that as a result of their illegal business, the government was losing P500 million annually in taxes."

He explained the illegal system allows overseas calls to reach their destination without passing through the normal communication gateways such as PLDT, Smart or Globe, depriving legitimate companies of additional income.

To embark on this modus operandi, the syndicate needs contacts abroad to sell their own call cards.

Cruz added: "In this case, the group sells cards in European countries. They can only entertain calls from abroad to the Philippines.

In their inventory receipt, the police noted they confiscated some 34 telephone units, two surge protectors, three computer units with CD-ROM drives, a scanner, a fax machine, 101 folders, several cables and antennas, and about six Quintum units used as interceptors, each costing $30,000.