TIGER RESORT Leisure and Entertainment, Inc. (TRLEI) has sought the recusal of Acting Prosecutor General Jorge G. Catalan Jr. from the two separate estafa cases it filed against Japanese gambling mogul Kazuo Okada, citing previous involvement in a related case. According to TRLEI’s 9-page motion for inhibition filed before the Department of Justice (DoJ) on May 24 and released to media on Thursday, Mr. Catalan “as concurrent City Prosecutor of Makati City, has previously and erroneously dismissed a criminal complaint for perjury filed by complainant TRLEI against Kazuo Okada and Takahiro Usui, same respondents in the captioned cases… Thus, complainant TRLEI seriously doubts that Prosecutor Catalan, if made to act in the captioned cases likewise involving the same parties and related issues, can act with the required objectivity and impartiality.” Sought for comment, Mr. Catalan told BusinessWorld, “pag-aaralan lang muna (I will first study)” the petition. TRLEI is the owner of casino resort and hotel Okada Manila, where Mr. Okada was chief executive officer until June 2017 when he was sacked for allegedly embezzling up to $10 million. — Dane Angelo M. Enerio

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