Jan Marsalek, dismissed board member and former chief operating officer of embattled German payment company Wirecard AG, went to the country in June before going to China, Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra said.
Mr. Guevarra said the central database of the Bureau of Immigration had shown that Mr. Marsalek arrived on June 23 and left for China on June 24 from Cebu International Airport.
“But CCTV (closed-circuit television) footage does not show him arriving here, and there is no record of any flight to China scheduled in the morning of June 24 from Cebu,” he told reporters via Viber.
The bureau is now investigating personnel of its management information system (MIS) division, Mr. Guevarra said.
“The results of the investigation of the MIS personnel may lead to various scenarios, including the possibility of employing diversionary tactics to mislead Marsalek’s pursuers. Let’s just wait for the report,” he said.
The Justice secretary on Wednesday said Mr. Marsalek had arrived in the country on March 3 and left on March 5.
Mr. Guevarra has ordered the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to probe people allegedly involved in the missing 1.9 billion euros ($2.1 billion) of Wirecard.
The NBI will coordinate with the Anti-Money Laundering Council in the initial phase of the investigation, he said.
Benjamin E. Diokno, governor of the Philippine central bank, on Sunday said none of the $2.1 billion missing from Wirecard had entered the country’s financial system.
Local lenders BDO Unibank, Inc. and Bank of the Philippine Islands denied that they had any business relationship with Wirecard in separate statements issued last Friday. — Vann Marlo Villegas
