Philippines arrests alleged Chinese scam farm chain boss

Manila: A Chinese man accused of running an extensive network of scam farms across the Philippines has been arrested, authorities in Manila said Frida...

Manila: A Chinese man accused of running an extensive network of scam farms across the Philippines has been arrested, authorities in Manila said Friday.

Lin Xunhan was detained in Binan city south of Manila late Thursday, amid a government crackdown of online businesses accused of defrauding clients and which have been linked to other crimes including kidnappings, prostitution, human trafficking, torture and murder.

The 33-year-old native of the Chinese province of Fujian "is a figure of significant concern within the landscape of organised crime in the Philippines," the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission said in a statement.

"Since 2016, (Lin) has systematically built a network of scam farms, often employing legal businesses as fronts to obscure his illicit activities" in the country, it said.

"While some of these operations have been raided and shut down, many continue to thrive, complicating law enforcement efforts to dismantle his extensive criminal enterprise."