Dismissed town mayor wanted by Senate arrested in Indonesia
A dismissed town mayor from Tarlac who has an arrest warrant by the Senate looking into her alleged role in illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator was nabbed in an Indonesian hotel and is in the custody of police, the Bureau of Immigration said Wednesday.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco said Alice Guo, also known as Guo Hua Ping, was arrested in Tangerang City, Jakarta at 1:30am.
“The information has been confirmed by our immigration counterparts in Indonesia, and we are very happy with this development,” said Tansingco.
“We have immediately forwarded the information to the Department of Justice and the Office of the Executive Secretary,” he said.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said Indonesia authorities are requesting the exchange of Guo for Australian drug suspect Gregor Haas, who was arrested in Cebu last May, the government's Philippine News Agency said.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said those who helped Guo escape will be axed and jailed.
''We will not just relieve them. We will file cases against them because what they did is against the law and against all of the interests of the Philippine judicial system,'' Marcos said in an ambush interview in Camp Aguinaldo.
Guo, who has an arrest warrant from the Senate, fled the country mid-July and went into hiding in Indonesia amid the investigation on her involvement in illegal Philippine Online Gaming Operators in the country.
Sheila Guo, who was earlier arrested in Indonesia with a reported associate, told lawmakers that she and two others escaped on board a white boat. They later transferred to another vessel.
Philippine National Police spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said the next step will be to bring Guo to the country soonest. When Guo arrives, she will be brought to the Senate, which issued the arrest warrant, said Fajardo.
Robina Asido/DMS
