A fugitive former mayor was detained in the Philippines early Friday after being extradited to the country, where she is accused of human trafficking and links to Chinese organised crime, Philippine authorities said.
Alice Leal Guo was initially arrested in Indonesia on Tuesday, having been on the run since she was linked to a Chinese-run online gambling centre where hundreds of people were forced to run scams or risk torture.
Philippine authorities said she was extradited on a government-chartered flight that landed at Manila International Airport at around 1:30 am on Friday (1730 GMT on Thursday).
Guo, the former mayor of Bamban, a town north of the capital Manila, is now in the custody of the Philippines national police, according to the Bureau of Immigration.
“The return of Alice Guo is a significant achievement for the Philippine justice system and highlights the effective collaboration between international counterparts and law enforcement agencies,” Norman Tansingco, commissioner of the immigration bureau, said in a statement.
Guo is also wanted by the Philippine Senate for refusing to attend hearings on her alleged ties to scam-farm operations in Bamban.
She faces charges of graft, money laundering and human trafficking in relation to the scam-farm raid in Bamban.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos thanked the Indonesian government earlier this week for their assistance on the arrest.
“Let this serve as a warning to those who attempt to evade justice: Such is an exercise in futility. The arm of the law is long and it will reach you,” Marcos said on social media.
