Kim Wong returns another P38.28 million—including 2 fake P500 bills

By: Ben O. de Vera - 9 years ago

Chinese businessman Kim Wong. CATHY MIRANDA/INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

Casino junket operator Kim Wong, through his lawyers, on Monday returned another P38.28 million in stolen money from Bangladesh’s central bank, but the turnover was hit a slight snag when authorities found two fake P500 bills amid the mountains of cash.

Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) Executive Director Julia Bacay-Abad confirmed that they found two counterfeit bills during the two-hour long counting that started at 11 a.m. and ended 1 p.m.

Bacay-Abad and Wong’s lawyer Victor Fernandez said Atty. Inocencio Ferrer Jr., had to shell out P1,000 to replace the fake banknotes.

All P38.28 million were in denominations of P500 and P1,000, Bacay-Abad said.

The P38.28 million “represented the funds abandoned by Gao Shuhua in Eastern Hawaii Leisure Co. Ltd. and/or Midas Casino,” Fernandez said.

The lawyer said it would take 15-30 days to raise some more funds before Wong could return another P450 million that was earlier borrowed by Gao.