Former human rights lawyer and presidential spokesperson Harry Roque has been implicated in a human trafficking case tied to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) Lucky South 99.

The Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) filed a supplemental petition on Monday with the Department of Justice, seeking to add Roque and two other individuals to an initial trafficking complaint.

The case, first filed in September, accused Lucky South 99 and its incorporator, Cassandra Ong, along with 53 other individuals, of allegedly engaging in kidnapping, torture, and debt bondage.

Roque, along with Peralta Macabasa and Ley Tan, is now named in the updated complaint under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, which holds officers and directors of involved corporations accountable.

According to the CIDG, Roque was listed in Lucky South 99’s organizational chart as “legal,” raising questions about his role.

Roque has strongly denied any involvement, stating he was never employed as the company’s legal counsel. He claims he merely accompanied Ong to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to assist in settling the company’s outstanding debts with Whirlwind Corp., a related entity.

In a Facebook statement, Roque dismissed the accusations as “trumped-up,” asserting that the Philippine Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) took months to find witnesses willing to implicate him.

“They had no evidence linking me to POGOs and obviously manufactured some now just to implicate me,” Roque said, pointing out that his name was not included in initial filings.