Alice Guo Leaves PNP Custodial Center for Court Appearance in Tarlac

September 6, 2024 Philippines Crime & Legal

Alice Guo, whose real Chinese name is Guo Hua Ping, left the Philippine National Police (PNP) custodial facility in Camp Crame, Quezon City, early Friday morning. She was transferred to Tarlac City to appear before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) following a recent arrest.

According to PNP Spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo, Guo departed the facility around 9:40 AM on September 6, 2024. “Around 9:40 po ay umalis po sa custodial facility si dating mayor Alice Guo and she is being escorted po ng mga myembro ng HSS [Headquarters Support Service] para dalhin po siya at ipresent sa RTC Tarlac,” he was quoted as saying in a report published by Inquirer.
(Around 9:40 AM, former mayor Alice Guo left the custodial facility and was escorted by members of the Headquarters Support Service to be presented at the RTC in Tarlac.)

Guo, who was removed from her position as mayor of Bamban town, Tarlac, was brought back to the Philippines before dawn on Friday after her arrest in Jakarta on Wednesday. On Thursday, Capas RTC Branch 109 issued a warrant of arrest against her for violating Section 3 (e) and (h) of Republic Act 3019, also known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

Fajardo explained that Guo’s court appearance is a procedural step. “As a matter of procedure po, dadalhin po siya kay Judge para ipakita po na siya ay naaresto at mag aantay po tayo ng desisyon ng korte kung maglalabas po ito ng commitment order para siya po ay i-commit sa ibang detention facility,” (As a matter of procedure, she will be brought before the judge to show that she has been arrested, and we will wait for the court’s decision on whether to issue a commitment order to transfer her to another detention facility.)

Should the court not issue a commitment order, Guo will be returned to the PNP custodial facility in Camp Crame.

Fajardo further noted that the Senate must first seek court permission before Guo can appear at its hearings. “’Yong warrant of arrest na inissue ng RTC Capas po takes precedence over the arrest warrant issued by the Senate so kung magkakaroon po ng hearing ang Senado at nasa kustodiya po siya ng PNP at hindi pa po nakakapag-bail ay ibig sabihin po nun ay nasa hurisdiksyon pa rin po siya ng korte,” (The arrest warrant issued by the RTC in Capas takes precedence over the Senate’s arrest warrant. If the Senate holds a hearing while she is in PNP custody and has not posted bail, it means she is still under the court’s jurisdiction.)

Despite these procedures, Fajardo assured that the Senate’s arrest order will still be enforced if Guo posts bail. “Hindi naman po ‘yon mababalewala as soon as they opted to avail po ng bail ay ise-serve po ‘yun so the Senate could take her into custody. But since under [PNP] custody pa po siya, hindi pa po ma-serve’ yung arrest order,” (It will not be rendered invalid; once she opts for bail, the arrest order will be served so the Senate can take her into custody. However, as she is still under PNP custody, the arrest order cannot be served yet.)