Alice Guo pleaded not guilty in election offense case
MANILA, Philippines — Dismissed Bamban Mayor Alice Guo (real name: Guo Hua Ping) pleaded not guilty to an election offense charge, her legal counsel said on Thursday.
Guo attended her arraignment at Capas, Tarlac Regional Trial Court Branch 66.
“Not guilty,” Atty. Stephen David said in a text message to INQUIRER.net when asked about Guo’s plea.
David also said Guo is expected to post bail on her election offense case.
Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia said Guo violated Section 74 in relation to Section 262 of the Omnibus Election Code.
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Article continues after this advertisement“She declared in her COC (certificate of candidacy) that she is a Filipino citizen and a resident of Bamban, Tarlac, when in truth and fact, she is not,” the Comelec resolution dated Oct. 8 reads.
The Comelec learned that Guo’s fingerprints in her voting records matched the fingerprints of a Chinese woman named Guo Hua Ping at the National Bureau of Investigation.
“We filed a case [against Alice Guo] in Bamban, Tarlac for having six duplicate fingerprints…One [of the fingerprints] is Chinese while the other five is from her,” Garcia said in a press conference during the certificate of candidacy filing for Bangsamoro parliamentary elections on Nov. 4.
READ: Alice Guo’s among 1 million duplicate fingerprints found by Comelec
Only Filipino citizens are allowed to run for public office.
Guo is also facing complaints for graft, qualified human trafficking, money laundering, and tax evasion and is likewise being investigated by Congress over her alleged links to Philippine offshore gaming operators. She is currently detained in Pasig City jail.
Her counsel previously announced that the dismissed mayor intends to run for reelection amid the charges, but she retracted her bid.