Detained ex-mayor Alice Guo pled not guilty to qualified human trafficking charges, her lawyer said on Friday.
Guo participated in the arraignment proceedings via videoconference while her counsel, Nicole Jamilla, personally appeared before the Pasig Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 167.
“She has no participation in trafficking really. That is right, without going into further details, because we might be subjugated, but on the part of our client, she is firm that she is not guilty of the crime she is accused of,” said Jamilla.
The case against Guo, which is non-bailable, stemmed from the complaint filed by the Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC).
Guo, also known as Chinese national Guo Hua Ping, is accused of involvement with a company that dealt with Zun Yuan Technology Inc., a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub located in Bamban town in Tarlac province, which was raided by authorities in March.
Aside from her human trafficking case, the dismissed Bamban mayor is also facing a graft case before a Valenzuela court as well as tax evasion and money laundering complaints before the Department of Justice (DOJ).
During a closed-door session at the Senate this week, Guo supposedly revealed the identity of the “most guilty” individual behind crimes linked to illegal POGOs.
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives’ four-committee panel (Quad Comm) looking into extrajudicial killings, POGOs and illegal drugs, cited a National Police Commission (Napolcom) commissioner for contempt and ordered his detention at the Batasan Complex premises in Quezon City.
Abang Lingkod Party-list Rep. Stephen Joseph Paduano initiated the motion to declare Commissioner Edilberto Leonardo in contempt for “evading and lying to the joint committee,” which was quickly approved by the panel.
Paduano, a former police colonel, was chastised for giving evasive answers when asked about a meeting he allegedly attended in Davao City in 2016, wherein the murders of three detained Chinese drug lords were planned.
The drug lords were allegedly killed upon then-President Rodrigo Duterte’s orders.
For his part, House Speaker Martin Romualdez lauded the Quad Comm’s work on investigating various illegal activities, including serious human rights violations, during the Duterte administration.
“This investigation is a crucial step toward the creation of a blueprint for the formulation of legislative solutions to uphold the rule of law,” he told his colleagues Wednesday night before adjourning for their first recess since convening in July.
“Criminals have no place in our society and we are leaving no stone unturned to preserve the peace and security in our country,” the Speaker said.
Romualdez said apart from doing its principal task of passing laws, the House exercised its oversight function by conducting inquiries in aid of legislation on pressing national issues.
“We don’t just make laws… we also have to watch out for the people’s well-being. Our investigations are ongoing to directly address the problems in Filipinos’ daily lives,” he said in Filipino.
