Guo denies attempting to conceal identity while in hiding

PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) Public Information Office (PIO) chief Colonel Jean Fajardo said on Thursday, September 5, 2024, that dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo denied attempting to conceal her identity by altering her physical appearance while hiding in Indonesia.

In a press conference in Camp Crame, Fajardo said Guo is already thinking of surrendering to Philippine authorities to face the charges filed against her even before she was arrested in a hotel in Tangerang City in Banten, Indonesia on Tuesday evening, September 3, Jakarta time.

“Well, nakita niyo naman ‘yung picture na shinare namin kahapon (September 4). Maliban sa mas maiksing buhok ay tinanong ko din yan mismo sa police attache kasi nakaharap at nakausap niya personal. Wala naman daw ‘yung sinasabi na nagparetoke or what,” Guo said.

(Well, you saw the picture we shared yesterday [September 4]. Aside from the shorter hair, I also asked the police attaché directly because he met and spoke with her in person. He said there’s no truth to the claims that she had plastic surgery or anything like that.)

“Medyo siguro she probably gained a little weight kaya medyo iba ‘yung itsura or siguro sa anggulo, but according to the police attache ay wala naman maliban sa maiksi ang buhok niya,” she added.

Guo will be escorted by Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos Jr. and PNP chief General Rommel on her way to the Philippines from Indonesia. They are expected to arrive late Thursday evening.

From the airport, she will be brought to the PNP General Hospital for a medical and physical examination before she will be turned over to the Senate sergeant-at-arms in line with the arrest order issued against her by the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality in July.

Guo has been in hot water over her alleged involvement in the raided illegal Pogo hub in Bamban, which is reportedly linked to various crimes, including human trafficking, serious illegal detention, murder, as well as scamming, hacking, and surveillance of government websites.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group filed human trafficking charges against her and several others in relation to the illegal Pogo firm.

Although she maintained that she is a Filipino national, the National Bureau of Investigation established through fingerprint examination that she is the same person as Chinese national Guo Hua Ping, who arrived in the country on January 12, 2003, at the age of 13, as a dependent of her mother, Lin Wen Yi.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government filed charges against her before the Ombudsman, which led to her dismissal from the office.

The Office of the Solicitor General also filed a quo warranto case against Guo while the Commission on Elections also lodged a complaint against her for allegedly misrepresenting herself, particularly about her nationality and other personal information, when she filed her certificate of candidacy for the 2022 local elections.

The Court of Appeals also earlier granted the request of the Anti-Money Laundering Council to freeze all the assets of Guo. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)