MANILA – Suspended Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo and several others were charged with alleged human trafficking in connection to the raided Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub in her municipality.
Guo, along with former Technology and Livelihood Resource Center (TLRC) deputy director general Dennis Cunanan, and others were filed with charges for violation of sections 4 and 6 of Republic Act (RA) 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 as amended by RA 10364, as further amended by RA 11862.
The complainants, Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) and the Philippine National Police, filed the criminal complaints before the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday morning.
Guo was referred to as “Guo Hua Ping” in the complaint, the name in the Bureau of Immigration documents released by Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian earlier this week, which Alice’’s camp denied to be her.
PAOCC spokesperson Winston John Casio said over the weekend that the cases they will file against Guo and her fellow respondents were “serious” and non-bailable.
He added that Guo’s name and signature “are in so many documents” and they also have other pieces of evidence that can pin the controversial mayor further to criminal cases.
“Masasabi lang po namin we have strong evidence that will support the criminal allegations against Mayor Alice Guo and a good number of people in the Bamban operations,” Casio said.
The Office of the Ombudsman suspended Guo and two other local officials earlier this month following the administrative complaint filed by Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).
Guo appealed her suspension and that the complaints filed against her over her alleged links to criminal activities of POGO in her town are “baseless.”/PN
