MANILA – State investigators have summoned Parañaque City government officials to provide details on the reported death of a former executive of German financial tech firm Wirecard, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said on Friday.
"The NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) has subpoenaed the city health officer and the civil registrar of Paranaque City to submit the death certificate, burial permit, and other relevant records of one Christopher Bauer who allegedly died last month," Guevarra said in a message to reporters.
Guevarra said Bauer is part of an ongoing investigation on the Wirecard fraud case by the NBI and the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC).
"It appears that he was a former executive of Wirecard Asia. In 2015, an inward remittance to his account from Wirecard Asia was noted, reportedly for consultancy services rendered," he added.
Last July 27, a man with the same name, Christopher Reinhard Bauer, reportedly died, according to the city's civil registrar's office.
Guevarra said the subpoenaed documents will confirm if he is the same person in the ongoing investigation, as well as for investigators to find out the cause of his death.
In June, the DOJ, upon consultation with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), directed the NBI to investigate certain individuals involved in the Wirecard scandal with the NBI coordinating with the AMLC in the initial phase of the investigation.
Wirecard saw its shares crash after its auditor said it could not trace 1.9 billion euros in cash, representing roughly a quarter of the firm's balance sheet.
Markus Braun, Wirecard's chief executive officer, had been arrested in Germany after being accused of inflating the company's balance sheet.
The BSP earlier said none of the missing funds from the German firm entered the Philippines' financial system. (PNA)
