A Japanese gaming firm wants the Department of Justice to take over the investigation of the leakage of documents in the $10-million estafa cases against gaming tycoon Kazuo Okada, saying a self-serving probe ordered by the city prosecutor is a prelude to a whitewash.
In a complaint, Tiger Resorts Leisure & Entertainment Inc. also asked Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra to punish Parañaque City Prosecutor Amerhassan Paudac for violating the rules and procedures, and the Code of Conduct for Prosecutors in handling cases before his office.
TRLEI earlier accused Paudac of bias and partiality for leaking copies of his resolutions dismissing the estafa cases against Okada, the dispositive portions of which landed in the social media accounts of Korean national Chloe Kim believed to be Okada’s girlfriend. TRLEI is the owner and operator of the posh Okada Manila at the sprawling Entertainment City in Parañaque where Okada was its chief executive officer before he was expelled last year for embezzling more than $10 million in company funds.
In its complaint, TRLEI asked Guevarra to stop Paudac from investigating the leak which he himself ordered fearing a whitewash of the probe, and for the justice chief to assume jurisdiction over the case.
Last week, TRLEI sought the investigation of Paudac for the leaks, and demanded that the prosecutor recuse from the cases pending in his office.
Paudac subsequently inhibited himself but did not deny that the resolutions had indeed been leaked, and proceeded to officially release them stressing that the resolutions are maintained. And instead of completely turning over the records of the case to the DoJ and distancing from the case, Paudac formed a panel to look into the leakage and even requested the National Bureau of Investigation to make a forensic examination of Kim’s social media accounts to determine if said posts “are fake or not, and how and from whom said account holder was able to obtain said photographs.”
“The formation of an investigating panel when he himself would be investigated is improper, self-serving and unjustified, and would only preempt the investigation that should be conducted by the DoJ,” TRLEI said.
TRLEI asked Guevarra to nullify Paudac’s investigation order and restrain the panel to conduct the probe of the leakage.
“It is the DOJ, not the panel formed by Paudac that should properly investigate the leakage of resolutions that happened at the Paranaque prosecutor’s office,” TRLEI said.
In her social media accounts, Kim posted photos of the dispositive and signature portions of the purported resolutions dismissing two estafa cases against Okada and other former officers of TRLEI with captions, “Devils will go the hell soon! 2 estafa cases against Kazuo Okada of Okada Manila dismissed. Justice prevails.”
TRLEI said it is highly irregular how Kim, who is not even a party to the cases, could have access to the resolutions as early as May 18.
“Thus, logic dictates that the resolutions disposing the captioned cases could not have been leaked to respondent Okada and/or his close companion
without the participation and/or fault of Paudac,” TRLEI said.
TRLEI has sued Okada before the Parañaque Prosecutor’s Office over unauthorized disbursements of more than USD10 million of the company’s funds between early 2016 and June 2017.