Dismissed Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo’s sister, Shiela Guo, is now at the custody of the Senate where she will be detained ahead of the Upper Chamber’s hearing into the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO)-related crimes.
Guo’s hands were cuffed when she arrived at the Senate, escorted by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
Senate Sergeant at Arms Roberto Ancan said Shiela Guo will also undergo medical check up and that the legal counsel is free to visit her. They are also now processing her personal belongings and other things for inventory.
The Senate medical team also conducted a medical examination on Shiela Guo to ensure her physical and mental health.
Ancan assured that the Senate is prepared to secure not only Shiela Guo but also other personalities who will be detained by the institution.
A security team has been assigned to guard Shiela Guo, round-the-clock, for her safety. As of now, Guo is not allowed to carry mobile phones and can only use the Senate phone to contact her legal counsel.
“She has no cellular phone, she can use our own phone to contact her lawyer,” Ancan told repoters in an interview.
The Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality, headed by Sen. Risa Hontiveros, will resume its hearing into the illegal activities, including human trafficking, by the two POGO hubs in Tarlac and Pampanga that authorities said are linked to the former Bamban mayor.
Meanwhile, the NBI has also turned over to the House of Representatives Cassandra Li Ong. Ong is going to be detained at the House’s detention facility. House Sergeant-at-Arms, retired Police Maj. Gen. Napoleon Taas, officially received Ong from the NBI, with turnover papers signed by NBI Assistant Director Winmar Ramos.
Ong, Alice Guo's alleged business associate, is said to be the incorporator for the POGO hub Lucky South 99. She was cited for contempt by the House after repeatedly failing to attend hearings related to POGO-related crimes, including those allegedly involving Lucky South 99, whose hub in Porac, Pampanga was raided by authorities.
Santa Rosa City Rep. Dan Fernandez, chairman of the House Committee on Public Order and Safety, and which is part of the “Quad-Com,” said the panel will have yet to decide whether Ong can be brought to the Senate for the scheduled hearing on Tuesday, August 27. According to Fernandez, Ong may also participate in the Senate hearing through teleconferencing or via a Zoom meeting.
Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, chair of the Committee on Dangerous Drugs and designated overall chair of the "Quad-Com" emphasized the importance of Ong's testimony to the House probe.
"Mahalaga si Cassandra Li Ong (She is important) because she is our only link to Lucky South 99 and other illegal POGO hubs that were raided by the PAOCC. Malaki ang participation niya (She has a huge participation) because she appears to be the liaison between these illegal POGOs and PAGCOR,” Barbers told reporters in a Zoom interview.
According to Barbers, it is necessary for the House panel to obtain information from Ong about the owners, lawyers, and incorporators involved in these operations, "because it's clear that there are numerous illegal activities going on."
"The first question we need to ask her is whether she was aware of the scam hubs, torture, prostitution, and other illicit activities. Cassandra Li Ong is a very vital resource person in the quad-committee’s investigation into illegal POGOs," he pointed out.
Both Ong and Sheila Guo were apprehended by Indonesian authorities in Indonesia and were immediately repatriated last Friday, August 23. They were immediately brought to the NBI.
Authorities, however, have yet to arrest Alice Guo. Malacañang has ordered the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to revoke Guo’s Philippine passport after she reportedly escaped the country.