Disgruntled ally of Central Luzon ‘jueteng lord’ spills the beans

ANGELES CITY — A disgruntled ally of a suspected gambling lord popularly known in Central Luzon as "Ngongo" has come out in the open to accuse him of cheating jueteng bettors and expose his alleged links to politicians and police officers.

Ruben Martin, 35, sought an audience with the Society of Pampanga Columnists here the other night, saying he fears for his life after his altercation with suspected gambling lord Melchor Caliwag, alias Ngongo, who is believed to have taken over the jueteng operations of Bong Pineda, another suspected gambling lord, in most parts of Central Luzon, particularly Pampanga.

"I have been pushed to the wall. I am ready to face the consequences," Marin said.

He admitted having worked for Caliwag, even paving the way for the his takeover of jueteng operations in this city starting March 18 last year.

Death threats

Marin said he has been receiving death threats since he sought financial assistance from Caliwag after his cousin, whom he considered a younger brother, was killed in an alleged encounter with the police along the Magalang Road last Dec. 14.

The National Bureau of Investigation later theorized that Marin’s cousin Henry, along with two companions, could have been summarily executed by nine policemen who were recently charged for the incident.

"I sought financial assistance from Ngongo but he refused and instead sought ways to dislodge me from jueteng operations by accusing me of cheating through the so-called ‘bookies,’" Marin said.

"Bookies" refers to the practice of jueteng workers of not declaring and remitting bets to the gambling lord, making them virtual jueteng operators free from paying grease money to police authorities and local government officials.

Until his rift with Caliwag, Marin said he used to work as his "station manager" for jueteng operations in Barangays Capaya I and II, Tabun, Mining, Sta. Cristo, Salapungan, Marisal, Pandan, Pulong Cacutud, Pulung Maragul and C.M. Recto.

As station manager, he said he was paid P18,000 per day, apart from one percent of gross for having helped Caliwag gain a foothold in local gambling operations.

Marin said he was paid such a high amount since he oversaw at least 10 jueteng stations in this city. Other station managers only received P800 a day.

Average daily take

He said the 10 jueteng stations earn an average of P2 million daily. Revenues even peaked to P3 million a day last December, he added.

Marin said Caliwag’s men beat up one of his cabos or jueteng supervisors in Dau, Mabalacat last week, after forcibly taking him from a jueteng station in Barangay Pandan.

The cabo, he said, was being pressured to implicate him in cheating in jueteng operations.

That day, Marin recalled, three jueteng bettors won a total of P300,000 after betting on the 18-3 number combination. The draw was disrupted by the presence of policemen on board two vehicles outside the jueteng station.

The policemen, however, left the draw undisturbed after Caliwag gave them P800 purportedly for gasoline, Marin said.

"Ngongo later accused me of taking advantage of the brief disruption to cheat the outcome of the draw and refused to pay P300,000 to the three winners," he said.

The mauled cabo, who also won some P100,000 on the 18-3 number combination, and the other winners later went to Caliwag’s residence at Villa Barosa in San Fernando City to seek the release of P300,000, but they failed to meet with him, Marin said.

‘"Instead, a police patrol car with a siren and another car occupied by another cop arrived to threaten them," he said.

Marin said a newly constructed four-story building along the Olongapo-Gapan Highway in Barangay Dolores in San Fernando City belongs to Caliwag.

The building cost some P120 million to build, he added.

Marin claimed that Caliwag has connections with powerful politicians and policemen in this city and in other parts of Pampanga.

During a crackdown on jueteng when President Arroyo assumed office in January last year, several cases of illegal gambling were filed against Caliwag. But he managed to post bail in all of these cases.