No proof ex-Wirecard exec left PH despite BI records: DOJ

FILE: Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Thursday (Sept. 5, 2019). (PNA photo by Avito C. Dalan)

MANILA – Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Friday said electronic records of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) showed that Jan Marsalek, former chief operating officer of the scandal-hit financial tech firm Wirecard, flew into the country last June 23 and left the next morning from Cebu.

“Entries in the central database of the BI indicate that Mr. Marsalek flew in on June 23 and left in the morning of June 24 for China from Cebu International Airport,” Guevarra said in a message to reporters.

He, however, said security closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera footage did not show Marsalek arriving in the country and that there is no record of any flight to China scheduled on the morning of June 24 from Cebu due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) lockdown.

“The BI is now investigating its MIS (Management Information System) division personnel,” Guevarra said.

Guevarra earlier said based on previous BI records, Marsalek arrived in the Philippines on March 3 and departed on March 5.

The Department of Justice (DOJ), upon consultation with Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno, directed the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to investigate certain individuals who are reportedly involved in the Wirecard case in Germany, allegedly resulting in the loss of 1.9 billion euros (USD2.1 billion).

The NBI will coordinate with the Anti-Money Laundering Council in the initial phase of the investigation.

Guevarra, meanwhile, said the NBI has invited lawyer Mark Tolentino to shed light on his alleged involvement in the scandal.

Reports said Tolentino, through his law firm, opened six bank accounts in Makati and Taguig City after he was approached by walk-in clients, including foreigners who said they would be setting up a financial tech company in the Philippines.

The investors, who identified themselves as representatives of a Singaporean firm, allegedly asked Tolentino to be a trustee of the company.

Wirecard saw its shares crash after its auditor said it could not trace 1.9 billion euros in cash, representing roughly a quarter of Wirecard’s balance sheet.

Markus Braun, Wirecard’s chief executive officer, had been arrested in Germany after being accused of inflating the company’s balance sheet.

The BSP earlier said none of the USD2.1-billion missing funds from the German firm entered the Philippines’ financial system.