Philippine authorities have arrested 244 foreign nationals in simultaneous raids on suspected illegal online gaming operations in Zamboanga Sibugay, the largest such crackdown this year.

The Bureau of Immigration said the operations took place on October 2 in the towns of Siay and Alicia on the island of Mindanao, with support from the National Bureau of Investigation and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

In Siay, 113 people were held, including 110 Chinese nationals, two Cambodians and one Hong Kong national. In Alicia, 131 were held, mostly Chinese, with nationals from Malaysia, Indonesia and Myanmar. Their identities are still being verified.

Officers seized 78 computer monitors, about 3,000 mobile phones, laptops and SIM cards from a compound. The bureau said the equipment pointed to an organised illegal online operation, possibly linked to scams.

The detainees face immigration probes, and the bureau is also looking at possible human trafficking offences. The Philippines banned offshore gaming operators under a 2024 executive order.