Guo-Haas swap: Wanted Australian man not yet for deportation – BI

The return of Guo Hua Ping (right), who is also named Alice Guo, to the Philippines reportedly met a setback as Indonesia allegedly wants a swap with drug trafficker Gregor Johann Haas (left). But the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said Thursday, September 5, 2024, that the wanted Australian man is not up for deportation yet because he is still facing charges in the Philippines. | PHOTOS: APNews/Philippine Bureau of Immigration and Philippine National Police

MANILA, Philippines — The return of Guo Hua Ping, who is also named Alice Guo, to the Philippines reportedly met a setback as Indonesia allegedly wants a swap with drug trafficker Gregor Johann Haas.

But the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said Thursday that the wanted Australian man is not up for deportation yet because he is still facing charges in the Philippines.

Although BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval told reporters in a phone interview that she is “not privy” to Haas’ cases, the agency said the Australian was implicated in an attempt to smuggle a shipment of floor ceramics filled with more than five kilograms of methamphetamine into Indonesia in December 2023.

READ: PH, Indonesia discuss swap of Guo with wanted Aussie

“He has a pending case in the Philippines; that’s why the implementation of deportation is not yet, he is not for deportation yet,” she said.

In May, the BI said Haas was detained in Cebu’s Bogo City after Interpol issued a red notice or an international alert for him due to a criminal complaint filed by Indonesian authorities.

Indonesian media reported that Manila and Jakarta were negotiating to swap Guo for Haas.

An officer at the Embassy of Indonesia in Manila confirmed to the Philippine Daily Inquirer that informal talks were ongoing between the two sides.

Sandoval, however, said the BI has no information on the reported proposal to swap Guo for Haas.

Indonesian authorities arrested Guo early Wednesday morning at a hotel in Jakarta.

Guo left the Philippines in July amid investigations of her alleged ties with illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators.