Philippine officials have denied reports that their investigation into Universal Entertainment’s activities in the country has been closed.

Last Thursday, the Japan-based Universal issued a statement saying that dual investigations in the Philippines and Japan had “concluded for all practical purposes.” The investigations were launched over suspicions that Universal’s Philippine subsidiary had funneled $40m in questionable payments to former top execs at Philippine gaming regulator PAGCOR. The payments were allegedly made to obtain concessions related to the development of an integrated resort in Manila’s Entertainment City casino zone.

On Monday, the Philippine Department of Justice issued a clarification saying no such conclusion had been reached. GMA News quoted Justice Secretary Leila de Lima saying Prosecutor General Claro Areliano had yet to receive the resolution of the panel of prosecutors investigating the brouhaha. Areliano also denied the claim, saying that the only instruction he’d issued was to tell the panel to speed up the resolution of the case.

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