Ex-PNP head denies Guo links

A FORMER national police chief has denied being in cahoots to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) and dismissed Bamban Mayor Alice L. Guo and her alleged cohorts after photos surfaced online of them together.

Authorities have been looking into a lead on a former chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) helping Ms. Guo flee the country amid a Senate arrest order.

At a Senate hearing looking into crimes related to POGOs, former PNP chief retired General Benjamin C. Acorda, Jr. said the photo of him with Sual Mayor Liseldo D. Calugay and the ex-Bamban Mayor was just one of the many courtesy calls he received last year from businessmen and local politicians after his appointment.

“As to his entourage during his visit, I have no personal knowledge of who was tagging along with him,” he said.

“Based on my recollection, the photo that was shown was taken last May 6, 2023, barely two weeks after my appointment, when I had a lot of visitors at the time.”

Bureau of Immigration Intelligence Division chief Fortunato S. Manahan, Jr. earlier told senators that his agency was looking into an alleged P200-million bribe from the former town mayor in exchange for her escape in July. 

Retired General Raul P. Villanueva, senior vice-president of Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.’s (PAGCOR) security and monitoring cluster, has said a former national police chief might have helped Ms. Guo escape.

The dismissed mayor has been accused of coddling an illegal offshore gaming company in the town of Bamban, Tarlac where she ran and won for the first time as mayor in 2022. The illegal hub had been raided by Philippine law enforcement due to links to scamming operations in March.

She was arrested in Jakarta on Sept. 4 after fleeing the country via a yacht amid a Senate arrest order and human trafficking complaints against her. The former mayor has denied these allegations and insists that she is a Filipino citizen.

Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections on Tuesday said it will file charges against dismissed Bamban Mayor Guo for allegedly committing material misrepresentation in the 2022 national and local elections.

“The Commission resolved, as it hereby resolves, to adopt the recommendation of the Law Department to the filing of information against Respondent Alice Leal Guo/Guo Hua Ping before the proper Regional Trial Court for violation of Section 74 in relation Section 262 of the Omnibus Election Code,” it said in a 12-page resolution.

The polls body said it found probable cause and recommended the filing of information against the controversial mayor for presenting false qualifications and deliberately attempting to mislead the voting public.

The ex-mayor is facing mounting legal battles for graft, qualified human trafficking, money laundering, and tax evasion for her alleged involvement in the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators hub in Bamban.

She is currently detained in Pasig City Jail. — John Victor D. Ordoñez and Chloe Mari A. Hufana