By NITZ ARANCON,
Correspondent
A FORMER president of the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (Oro Chamber) yesterday claimed to be one of the victims of an alleged investment scam that resulted in the arrest of a group that included former vice mayor Caesar Ian Acenas in Mandaue City in Cebu on Tuesday night.
Businessman Ruben Vegafria, who sits in the Oro Chamber’s board of trustees, said he “invested” in the double-your-money scheme of alleged scammer Ailyn Hope Matulac’s group before it renamed itself from Blitz Unlimited to Phoenix EA Holdings International Inc..
Matulac, the president and chief executive officer of Phoenix EA Holdings, and other arrested suspects were charged with estafa before the Mandaue City Prosecutor’s Office on Thursday, according to Maj. Edwin Lacostales, CIDG chief for Mandaue.
Vegafria is a prominent figure in the city’s business community. Aside from leading the city’s premier business group, he also once headed Promote CDO and is a former member of the board of the Cagayan de Oro Water District (COWD).
He declined to say exactly how much he lost to the group of Matulac. “Basta dako-dako gyud,” he told the Gold Star Daily.
Matulac and former vice mayor Acenas were among the five people arrested by officers from the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Mandaue early this week. According to the CIDG, Matulac’s group had just started operating in Cebu and defrauding “investors” in Mindanao, including those Davao and Cagayan de Oro, of at least P400 million.
Vegafria said he left for Cebu following the arrest of Matulac to support other “investors” who complained about being ripped off by Matulac’s group.
He said he earlier filed a complaint for syndicated estafa against Matulac’s group in Panabo, Davao City.
“Gi-adto-an gyud nako sa Cebu aron paghatag support sa mga complainant para molig-on ang ilang sumbong batok sa grupo ni Matulac,” Vegafria said.
He said he was able to see Acenas who was placed under detention at the CIDG office in Mandaue.
Vegafria said he sympathized with Acenas, calling the former vice mayor a victim of a syndicate.
“Nadalahig ra sab siya (Acenas). Wala siyay labot sa sindikato kay ‘investor’ ra pud siya,” he said.
Vegafria said he advised Acenas to testify against those behind Phoenix EA Holdings.
He said, “Vice Mayor Ian Acenas, as I know, is not part” of Phoenix EA Holdings or Bltiz Unlimited, and “I am sure he is one [of] the many victimized investors.”
According to Vegafria, the former vice mayor and Matulac have been friends since their college days.
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