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Indonesia arrests Filipino fugitive accused of running a $67 million investment scam

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Indonesia arrests Filipino fugitive accused of running a $67 million investment scam
News

News

Indonesia arrests Filipino fugitive accused of running a $67 million investment scam

2024-11-26 18:19 Last Updated At:18:20

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Authorities on Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali arrested a Filipino fugitive accused of helping scam over $67 million out of clients in the Philippines, officials said Tuesday.

Hector Aldwin Pantollana, 35, widely known in the Philippines as a casino junket operator, was arrested on Nov. 9 when an automatic gate at immigration in I Gusti Ngurah Rai international airport in Bali identified him as a wanted person using biometric data, said Saffar M. Godam, the acting Director General of immigration at Indonesia’s Immigration and Correctional Ministry.

He said Pantollana first arrived in Bali on Oct. 10, and on Oct. 31 Interpol released a so-called Red Notice for him, a request to law enforcement agencies worldwide to detain or arrest a suspect wanted by a specific country.

Indonesian authorities brought the suspect to Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, for further investigation and will deport Pantollana to the Philippines on Wednesday, Godam said.

Indonesia's National Central Bureau Interpol chief Untung Widyatmoko said Pantollana was named as a suspect by the Philippines’ national police after he allegedly collected more than 4 billion Philippine pesos ($67.7 million) from thousands of people for fake investments.

Widyatmoko lauded cooperation between immigration and the national police for capturing foreign criminals who have tried to hide in Indonesia.

“This collaboration aims to make the ASEAN region an area free from transnational crime and criminal hiding,” Widyatmoko said.

Indonesia, an archipelago nation on the crossroads between Asia and the South Pacific, is attractive to local, regional and global organized crime because of its geographical location and its multi-cultural society.

Last month, Indonesia’s immigration officers in Bali arrested a Chinese suspect sought by Beijing for helping to run investment scams that brought in over $14 billion from clients in China.

Indonesian authorities in September arrested Alice Guo, a fugitive former mayor of a town in the Philippine accused of having links to Chinese criminal syndicates. She has since been deported to the Philippines.

In June, Chaowalit Thongduang, one of Thailand’s most wanted fugitives, was escorted back to Thailand on a Thai air force plane after being arrested in Bali following months on the run over allegations he was involved in several killings and drug trafficking.

Hector Aldwin Pantollana, center, accused of a multi million dollars casino investment scam in the Philippines, is escorted by immigration officers during a press conference following his arrest, at the office of the Directorate General of Immigration in Jakarta, Indonesia Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024.(AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Hector Aldwin Pantollana, center, accused of a multi million dollars casino investment scam in the Philippines, is escorted by immigration officers during a press conference following his arrest, at the office of the Directorate General of Immigration in Jakarta, Indonesia Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024.(AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Hector Aldwin Pantollana, center, accused of a multi million dollars casino investment scam in the Philippines, is escorted by immigration officers during a press conference following his arrest, at the office of the Directorate General of Immigration in Jakarta, Indonesia Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Hector Aldwin Pantollana, center, accused of a multi million dollars casino investment scam in the Philippines, is escorted by immigration officers during a press conference following his arrest, at the office of the Directorate General of Immigration in Jakarta, Indonesia Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Hector Aldwin Pantollana, accused of a multi million dollars casino investment scam in the Philippines, is escorted by immigration officers during a press conference following his arrest, at the office of the Directorate General of Immigration in Jakarta, Indonesia Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Hector Aldwin Pantollana, accused of a multi million dollars casino investment scam in the Philippines, is escorted by immigration officers during a press conference following his arrest, at the office of the Directorate General of Immigration in Jakarta, Indonesia Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 26, 2024--

Intel Corporation and the Biden-Harris Administration announced today that the U.S. Department of Commerce and Intel have reached agreement on terms to award the company up to $7.86 billion in direct funding for its commercial semiconductor manufacturing projects under the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act. The award will support Intel’s previously announced plans to advance critical semiconductor manufacturing and advanced packaging projects at its sites in Arizona, New Mexico, Ohio and Oregon. Intel also plans to claim the U.S. Treasury Department’s Investment Tax Credit, which is expected to be up to 25% of qualified investments of more than $100 billion.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20241126483779/en/

“With Intel 3 already in high-volume production and Intel 18A set to follow next year, leading-edge semiconductors are once again being made on American soil,” said Pat Gelsinger, CEO of Intel. “Strong bipartisan support for restoring American technology and manufacturing leadership is driving historic investments that are critical to the country’s long-term economic growth and national security. Intel is deeply committed to advancing these shared priorities as we further expand our U.S. operations over the next several years.”

The announcement demonstrates the U.S. government’s confidence in Intel’s essential role in building a resilient, trusted semiconductor supply chain on domestic soil. Since the passage of the CHIPS and Science Act more than two years ago, Intel has announced plans to invest more than $100 billion in the U.S. to expand chipmaking and advanced packaging capacity and capabilities critical to economic and national security. The historic investments will support tens of thousands of jobs, strengthen U.S. supply chains, foster U.S.-based R&D, and help ensure American leadership in cutting-edge semiconductor manufacturing and technology capabilities.

“The CHIPS for America program will supercharge American technology and innovation and make our country more secure – and Intel is expected to play an important role in the revitalization of the U.S. semiconductor industry,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Thanks to the leadership of President Biden and Vice President Harris, our CHIPS award is catalyzing Intel to make one of the largest investments in semiconductor manufacturing in U.S. history.”

Press Kit:U.S. CHIPS Act Funding for Intel

The award follows the previously signed preliminary memorandum of terms and the completion of Commerce’s due diligence, in addition to the announced investment tax credit. The final total award is less than the proposed preliminary award due to a congressional requirement to use CHIPS funding to pay for the $3 billion Secure Enclave program.

U.S. Manufacturing and R&D Investments

The CHIPS Act award will directly support Intel’s investments at sites where the company develops and produces many of the world’s most advanced chips and semiconductor packaging technologies, including in Arizona, the Silicon Desert; New Mexico, the Silicon Mesa; Ohio, the Silicon Heartland; and Oregon, the Silicon Forest.

Intel was founded in the U.S. and has been innovating, investing and supporting global semiconductor manufacturing and R&D for more than 50 years. Intel currently employs approximately 45,000 people in the U.S.

Foundry Momentum and Technology Leadership

Intel is nearing completion of a historic pace of semiconductor node development to regain process technology leadership. Intel 18A, the company’s fifth process node in four years, is on track to launch in 2025 and continues to gain traction with customers. The company is finalizing a multiyear, multibillion-dollar commitment by Amazon Web Services to expand its existing partnership to include a new custom Intel® Xeon® 6 chip on Intel 3 and a new AI fabric chip on Intel 18A.

In September 2024, Intel won a manufacturing contract for up to $3 billion for the Secure Enclave program. This program is designed to expand the trusted manufacturing of leading-edge semiconductors for the U.S. government and builds on Intel’s relationship with the U.S. Department of Defense through the Rapid Assured Microelectronics Prototypes - Commercial (RAMP-C) and State-of-the-Art Heterogeneous Integrated Packaging (SHIP) programs.

Additionally, Intel reported key milestones in advanced semiconductor manufacturing with the completed assembly of the industry’s first commercial High Numerical Aperture (High NA) Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography scanner and receipt of an additional High NA tool installed at the company’s Hillsboro, Oregon, R&D site. This will enable Intel to lead cutting-edge advancements that will define next-generation chip manufacturing.

Workforce Development and Childcare Benefits

Alongside its manufacturing and technology investments, Intel has a long-standing history of investing in the American workforce by supporting education, training and benefits programs needed to create the jobs of the future. In 2022, for example, Intel announced a $100 million investment to expand semiconductor education, research and workforce training opportunities across the nation.

As part of Intel’s overall CHIPS award, $65 million is set aside to support the company’s efforts to create a more skilled semiconductor workforce. Intel plans to use $56 million to help train students and faculty at all education levels to support industry growth. This includes, for example, Intel’s recently launched U.S. registered apprenticeship program for manufacturing facility technicians.

The company will use $5 million of the dedicated workforce award to help increase childcare availability near Intel’s facilities. This is intended to support Intel’s recently announced plans to broaden childcare benefits and pilot innovative programs to support working families. The remaining $4 million of the $65 million award will support Intel’s participation in the CHIPS Women in Construction Framework, which Intel voluntarily committed to this year to help expand the construction workforce by increasing the participation of women and economically disadvantaged individuals.

Finally, Intel is partnering with the Midwest Microelectronics Consortium (MMEC) as its members receive funding for five technology development projects within the Microelectronics Commons initiative established under the CHIPS Act. These projects will engage more than 30 MMEC members representing organizations from industry, academia and government stakeholders to advance domestic microelectronic technology development to deliver solutions to strengthen the U.S.-based supply chain.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Words such as "accelerate", "achieve", "aim", "ambitions", "anticipate", "believe", "committed", "continue", "could", "designed", "estimate", "expect", "forecast", "future", "goals", "grow", "guidance", "intend", "likely", "may", "might", "milestones", "next generation", "objective", "on track", "opportunity", "outlook", "pending", "plan", "position", "possible", "potential", "predict", "progress", "ramp", "roadmap", "seek", "should", "strive", "targets", "to be", "upcoming", "will", "would", and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, which may include statements regarding:

Such statements involve many risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied, including those associated with:

Given these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. Readers are urged to carefully review and consider the various disclosures made in this release and in other documents we file from time to time with the SEC that disclose risks and uncertainties that may affect our business.

Unless specifically indicated otherwise, the forward-looking statements in this release do not reflect the potential impact of any divestitures, mergers, acquisitions, or other business combinations that have not been completed as of the date of this filing. In addition, the forward-looking statements in this release are based on management's expectations as of the date of this release, unless an earlier date is specified, including expectations based on third-party information and projections that management believes to be reputable. We do not undertake, and expressly disclaim any duty, to update such statements, whether as a result of new information, new developments, or otherwise, except to the extent that disclosure may be required by law.

About Intel

Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) is an industry leader, creating world-changing technology that enables global progress and enriches lives. Inspired by Moore’s Law, we continuously work to advance the design and manufacturing of semiconductors to help address our customers’ greatest challenges. By embedding intelligence in the cloud, network, edge and every kind of computing device, we unleash the potential of data to transform business and society for the better. To learn more about Intel’s innovations, go to newsroom.intel.com and intel.com.

© Intel Corporation. Intel, the Intel logo and other Intel marks are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.

A September 2024 photo shows a powerful crane on the Intel Ohio One construction site in Licking County, Ohio. Students at nearby Johnstown Monroe Intermediate School named the powerful crane "Ms. Armstrong,” paying homage to Ohio’s history in innovation, aviation and space. Standing more than twice as tall as the Statue of Liberty, the crane can lift 5.5 million pounds. (Credit: Intel Corporation)

A September 2024 photo shows a powerful crane on the Intel Ohio One construction site in Licking County, Ohio. Students at nearby Johnstown Monroe Intermediate School named the powerful crane "Ms. Armstrong,” paying homage to Ohio’s history in innovation, aviation and space. Standing more than twice as tall as the Statue of Liberty, the crane can lift 5.5 million pounds. (Credit: Intel Corporation)

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