CNA – Philippine and Indonesian authorities are discussing a potential prisoner swap involving fugitive former mayor Alice Guo and an Australian drug smuggling suspect wanted by Jakarta.
Accused of links to Chinese criminal syndicates, Guo was arrested on Tuesday in Tangerang City – on the outskirts of Jakarta – after over a month on the run. She is wanted by the Philippine Senate for refusing to attend a congressional probe on her alleged criminal ties.
Indonesian officials have said she will be deported to the Philippines, although the timing of her return has yet to be fixed.
“(The timing) depends on the police investigation results,” Indonesia’s Law Minister Supratman Andi Agtas told the media.
Jakarta has expressed hope that Manila will reciprocate by extraditing Gregor Haas, a fugitive wanted by Indonesia’s anti-drug agency. The Australian national was arrested in Cebu in May, and has been accused of drug trafficking.
“We hope that the Philippine government will cooperate by handing over Gregor Haas,” Head of the Indonesian National Police’s International Relations Division Inspector General Krishna Murti told Indonesian news outlet Kompas on Wednesday.
“This matter is still under negotiation for an official exchange.”
Philippine Department of Justice officials clarified yesterday that Indonesia has not lodged a formal request for a prisoner swap.
“There’s no official request from Indonesia regarding the prisoner swap that is being talked about,” Justice Undersecretary Nicky Ty said in an interview on Dobol B TV as reported by GMA News Online. He added that it was only a “possibility”.
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Right now we’re still hoping that Alice Guo will be immediately deported,” he added.
In a statement on Wednesday, Guo’s lawyer Stephen David said his legal team was relieved about Guo’s safe apprehension.
“This is a welcome development for us so that we can answer the allegations and issues thrown against her. As her counsel, we are deeply concerned about her health, safety and security,” said David as reported by Filipino news outlets.
“She may not know or realise it by now, but this recent event can be a good start for all her cases,” he added.
The Senate launched an investigation in May after a casino raid in Bamban in March uncovered what law enforcement officials said were scams run from a facility built on land Guo partly owned.
Philippine law enforcement agencies, including the Anti-Money Laundering Council, last month jointly filed multiple counts of money laundering against Guo and 35 others to the justice department.
They accused Guo and her co-conspirators of having laundered criminal proceeds amounting to more than PHP100 million (USD1.8 million).
