By Gabriel Kim Leal
(June 6, 2025) – What appeared to be a casual pool party at a private resort in Marilao, Bulacan turned out to be a cover for a human trafficking modus, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) revealed on Friday.
Agents from the NBI’s Organized and Transnational Crime Division raided the venue and arrested two individuals accused of pimping out women, including minors. One of the suspects allegedly offered her own daughter to clients.
The raid was launched following a tip from a non-governmental organization, which reported that minors were being sexually exploited at the resort.
“May misreprensentation na ginagawa itong dalawang nahuling bugaw, kung ano-ano ang sinasabi. Itong mga bata naman sa kagustuhan magkapera, sumipot sa isang resort. Isang pamamaraan ng human trafficking ay panlilinlang at pag-exploit ng kanilang vulnerability o kahirapan,” said NBI spokesperson Ferdinand Lavin.
Footage released by the NBI showed several women casually eating and drinking poolside. One suspect was caught on video receiving money from an undercover agent posing as a client. Moments later, agents moved in and made the arrests.
In total, 11 victims were rescued during the operation. Four of them were minors, aged 15 to 16, and one was pregnant. Authorities said the women were being offered to clients for P3,000 to P5,000 each.
One suspect denied the accusations.
“Hindi ko po kilala yung mga minor, ang kilala ko lang po talagang sumama ‘yung anak ko po tapos sinama yung classmate niya ang alam lang talaga namin party lang po, pool party,” said the suspect, whose identity was withheld.
Both suspects are facing charges under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act, with additional charges under the Cybercrime Prevention Act.
The NBI said the rescued victims will receive psychosocial support.
Meanwhile, the resort’s management claimed they were unaware of the illegal activity taking place on their premises.
(With reports from Elaine Fulgencio, News5)
(AGD)
Our Privacy Commitment
TV5 Network Inc. values and respects your privacy. We are committed to safeguarding your personal data in compliance with Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and its implementing rules and regulations.
We have developed a Privacy Policy that adopts and observes appropriate standards for personal data protection. While our Privacy Policy sets out the general principles governing the collection, use, and disclosure of our users’ personal information, our Privacy Commitment seeks to inform you more about TV5’s privacy practices.
Why do we collect your personal information (as applicable)?
We may collect and maintain basic information about you as site user of TV5 sites for the following purposes:
Where do we get your personal information?
There are several ways we collect your personal information.
Information that you personally provided.
Most of the personal information we have are those that you have provided us when you:
Information we collect during your engagement with us
We also collect information as you use our products and services, like:
Information we collect from other sources
Other means of collection of information may be through:
When do we disclose personal information?
There may be instances when we are required to share the information you provided us. In such cases, we ensure that your personal information will be disclosed on a confidential manner, through secure channels and in compliance with the Data Privacy Act and other privacy laws.
We will never share, rent, or sell your personal information to third parties outside of TV5 except in special cases where you have given consent, and in cases described in our privacy policy.
In some instances, we may be required to disclose your personal information to our agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, business partners and other third-party agencies and service providers as part of our regular business operations and for the provision of our programs and services. This means we might share your information with our service providers, contractors, and professional advisers who help us provide our services.
How we protect your personal information
The integrity, confidentiality, and security of your information is important to us. We have implemented technical, organizational, and physical security measures that are designed to protect your information from unauthorized or fraudulent access, alteration, disclosure, misuse, and other unlawful activities.
We also put in effect the following safeguards:
TV5 will not collect, use, or disclose your personal information for any purpose other than the purpose that you may have given your consent for.
What are your choices?
We make sure that we have your consent to continue to collect, use, and disclose your personal information for the purposes that we have identified. We want you to know that you may object or withdraw your consent and/or edit your consent preferences at any time.
If you wish to have access to the personal information in our custody or if you think that the personal information you provided is incomplete, or otherwise inaccurate, you may get in touch with our Data Protection Officer through the contact details provided below. In some instances, we may request for supporting documents or proof before we effect requested changes.
Data Protection Officer
TV5 Network Inc.
Reliance corner Sheridan Streets
Mandaluyong City
tv5dataprivacy@tv5.com.ph
What happens when there are changes in our Policy?
From time to time, we may update our privacy policy and practices to comply with changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements, adapt to new technologies and protocols, and align with the best practices of the industry.
You will be provided notices if the changes are significant and, if we are required by law, we will obtain your updated consent.