Bucor, jail officials deny Guo given VIP treatment
Officials of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) and Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) in Mandaluyong City on Thursday denied claims that former Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo has been receiving VIP treatment at the detention facility.
BuCor Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. said in a statement that Guo has been under a mandatory five-day quarantine at the CIW since her transfer from the Pasig City Jail on Saturday night. The setup limits access to her lawyers.
CIW Chief Superintendent Marjorie Ann Sanidad also said in a statement that Guo is not receiving preferential treatment, adding: “There are no special privileges. She is subject to the same regulations and restrictions as everyone else.”
Guo, who had been declared by a Manila court in June as “undoubtedly a Chinese citizen” based on fingerprint evidence, was sentenced to life imprisonment for human trafficking last month, along with seven others. This was after a Pasig court found Guo, also known as Guo Hua Ping, to be at the center of criminal activities involving a Philippine offshore gaming operator in Bamban town.
According to CIW records, only her lawyers have been cleared to see her in line with health and security protocols.
Sanidad also dismissed claims that Guo managed to use a personal cell phone days after she arrived at CIW.
According to the CIW official, phones are banned in all prison facilities for inmates, visitors and BuCor personnel, including in the quarantine area at the Reception and Diagnostic Center (RDC).
“Given these measures, it is not possible for her to obtain or possess such a device,” Sanidad said.
The statements came after anonymous tips circulated among reporters that Guo was visited repeatedly over the weekend by two “Chinese-looking” men.
Request denied
Catapang, meanwhile, said they denied Guo’s request to remain in quarantine for an additional 55 days.
In a letter, Guo and two women convicted with her, Jaimielyn Cruz and Rachelle Joan Carreon, cited emotional strain from adjusting to life inside the facility and the pressures of public scrutiny.
Catapang rejected the request and directed Sanidad to transfer the women to the RDC after their mandatory five-day quarantine. There, they will undergo a 55-day orientation, diagnostic and classification process before being moved to the maximum security camp.
