The Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Thursday it is weighing the possible prisoner swap with the Indonesian government in exchange for custody of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo.
The said swap involves Gregor Johann Haas, an Australian national facing drug smuggling charges in Indonesia, and who was arrested in Cebu by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) authorities in May.
“The person we suspect they want is in the custody of the BI. Yesterday, we thought that this might be a challenge because they want to get this person, but so far there is no formal request yet,” said DOJ Usec. Nicolas Felix Ty in Filipino.
He underscored the DOJ still has no official position in the situation yet until it receives an official request coming from the Indonesian government.
A prisoner exchange may need to go through diplomatic channels including the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), according to him.
He suggests it would be better if the former mayor could first be allowed to be brought back to the Philippines before discussing the possible exchange.
Ty noted that while there is an outstanding warrant of arrest issued by the Senate, there is also a basis for a warrantless arrest by the Philippine National Police (PNP).
Meanwhile, he praised the Indonesian counterparts for the swift turnover of Shiela Guo and Cassandra Ong following their arrest last month.
