An opposition senator said he was is looking to speed up the passage of a bill that would increase penalties for crimes involving cryptocurrencies.
Leila M. de Lima urged senators to push for the "swift passage" of a bill, which she filed in March, and that seeks to impose heavier penalties for crimes involving cryptocurrencies.
De Lima's call was prompted by a recent bitcoin fraud case in the Philippines where the suspects allegedly lured more than 100 people to invest money into their investment scam, amassing up to nine million pesos.
"I hope that this occurrence will push my esteemed colleagues in the Senate to take my proposed bill seriously and help pass it into law soon. Knowing that virtual currency resembles money, and that the possibilities in using it are endless, higher penalty for its use on illegal activities is necessary," she said in a statement.
According to De Lima, Senate Bill (SB) No. 1694 would "allow all crimes defined in the Republic Act No. 3815 or the Revised Penal Code (RPC)", when involving the use of virtual currencies, to have a penalty that is "one degree higher than what is provided for by the RPC".
The press release states that, at the beginning of this month, suspected con artist and operator of New G Bitcoin Investment Trading Arnel Ordonio and with his wife Leonady were arrested in an entrapment operation in Ilocos Sur by the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG).
The suspects allegedly promoted NewG through social media and lured people to invest in their online business, which trades in Bitcoin, with a promise of a 30% return on investments with payouts every 15 days.
According to the press release, De Lima, who is the senator for the Bicol region of the Philippines, is currently under pre-trial detention for trumped-up illegal drug trade charges based on manufactured evidence and perjured testimonies of convicted felons.