Mayor Alice Guo Cannot Be Located amid Arrest Order by Senate
ALICE GUO – Attorney Stephen David hopes that the Mayor will surrender to the Senate authorities amid arrest order.
Suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo skipped the July 10 hearing set by the Senate. She is facing accusations about her alleged involvement in the illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming operations in her town as well as questions about her identity.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) found that Guo’s fingerprints match the fingerprints of Chinese national Guo Hua Ping. The authorities also found that billions were deposited in the bank accounts of the Mayor although her listed corporations were not earning.
The Anti-Money Laundering Council or AMLC previously confirmed that the Court of Appeals has released a Freeze Order on the assets of Mayor Alice Guo as well as those who are accused of involvment to illegal POGO operations.
The Mayor was found to have at least 36 bank accounts. Following her absence in the Senate hearing last July 10, the Senate committee handling the issue cited Guo for contempt. Last Saturday, the Senate released an arrest order against Mayor Guo.
The Senate’s Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms was ordered to serve the arrest warrant within 24 hours since its release. However, when the authorities visited all the registered addresses of Guo, they were not able to find the Mayor. Currently, they have yet to locate the suspended politician.
Senate President Chiz Escudero vowed that the Senate will continue to search for Mayor Alice Guo. Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, Mayor Alice Guo’s lawyer Atty. Stephen David said that she is contemplating on the possibility of surrendering to the Senate.
According to Atty. Stephen David, as a lawyer, he encouraged Mayor Alice Guo to surrender to the Senate. Mayor Alice Guo’s lawyer stressed that “it sets a bad precedent for someone, especially a government official, to become a fugitive”.
Guo may be tagged as a fugitive if she fails to attend the July 29 hearing set by the Senate. Senator Sherwin Gatchalian believes that the Mayor is still in the Philippines due to the hold departure order against her.