Retired police general Wenceslao “Wally” Sombero returned to the Philippines yesterday morning after being threatened to have his passport cancelled and be arrested for snubbing summons to appear before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee investigating the P50-million bribery scandal involving Chinese gambling tycoon Jack Lam.
Justice Undersecretary Erickson Balmes said that Sombero arrived before 9 a.m. at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 2 aboard Philippine Airlines flight PR 112 from Vancouver, Canada.
Prior his return, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre has already instructed Bureau of Immigration (BI) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to secure Sombero upon his arrival.
“Considering that Mr. Sombero is a vital witness to the on-going Senate investigation, particularly by the Blue Ribbon Committee, on the alleged bribery/extortion in the BI, his security preparation should be in place,” read Aguirre’s memorandum dated February 13.
Aguirre also instructed the NBI to ask Sombero if he needs security assistance or protective custody.
Also, the secretary told the NBI to also provide assistance for the proper turnover of Sombero to the Blue Ribbon Committee where he is expected to appear in the scheduled hearing this coming Thursday.
Sombero managed to slip out of the country on January 17 even though he was already placed by Aguirre in the Immigration Lookout Bulletin Order (ILBO).
Blue Ribbon Committee chairman Senator Richard Gordon has already cited Sombero for contempt for repeatedly failing to appear at the hearings and threatened to have his passport cancelled and arrested if he fails to return to the Philippines.
Acting as middleman for Lam, Sombero was the one who handed R50 million to dismissed BI deputy Commissioners Al Argosino and Michael Robles.
Sombero claimed that Argosino and Robles extorted money in exchange for the release of some of the 1,316 Chinese workers who were arrested in illegal online gambling operations in Lam’s Fontana Leisure Park and Casino Hotel in Clark, Pampanga.
However, Argosino and Robles claimed that Sombero bribed them on behalf of Lam for the release of some of the arrested Chinese.
