PAOCC eyes tax evasion raps vs Mayor Guo

MANILA, Philippines — The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) is eyeing to file charges of tax evasion and violation of securities laws against Mayor Alice Guo of Bamban, Tarlac.

The cases are separate from those filed by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) against Guo in relation to the Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub raid in Bamban in March.

Guo was suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman, following a complaint from the DILG that she issued a business permit to Zun Yuan Technology despite it having an expired license.

According to PAOCC spokesman Winston Romeo Casio, other local officials of Bamban may be included in the cases.

“As far as we are concerned, we have found administrative violations,” he said.

On tax evasion charges, Casio said they have yet to compute the amount involved, but he believes it would be significant, taking note of Guo’s lavish lifestyle.

The charges will also include the years when Guo was involved with the POGO firm when she was still a private citizen.

The alleged violation of the Securities Regulation Code involves Guo’s reported connections with the illegally operating firm, Hongsheng Gaming Technology Inc. which was raided by authorities in Bamban last year, and the Baofu Land Development Inc.

Casio said the PAOCC welcomed the preventive suspension issued against Guo.

Last March, authorities raided a 10-hectare compound operated by Zun Yuan, which led to the rescue of around 800 alleged victims of human trafficking and torture.

Guo was subjected to a probe after an electric meter of Zun Yuan was found to be under her name. Authorities also discovered a vehicle inside the POGO facility registered under the mayor’s name. — Daphne Galvez, Marc Jayson Cayabyab