Dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo and three co-accused were sentenced to reclusion perpetua on Thursday, Nov. 20, by the Pasig Regional Trial Court Branch 167 for qualified human trafficking tied to an illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operation (POGO) in Tarlac.
Also convicted were Rachelle Malonzo Carreon, Jaimielyn Cruz, and Walter Wong Rong, who organized trafficking operations inside the Baofu compound in Bamban.
They were ordered to pay a P2 million fine.
The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the Philippine National Police and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) after a raid last year on the POGO operated by Zun Yuan Technology.
The Baofu company, site of the scam hub, was forfeited to the government.
Guo had earlier been dismissed by the Office of the Ombudsman for grave misconduct after being linked to the Chinese-run gambling center, where hundreds were allegedly forced to run scams under threat of torture.
She was charged under the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2022, which penalizes those who “organize, provide financial support, or direct other persons to commit acts of trafficking.”
Guo, currently detained at the Pasig City Jail Dormitory, will be transferred to the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong, while her co-accused will be placed under the custody of the Bureau of Corrections. (Richielyn Canlas)
