By Liezelle Soriano
MANILA — Suspended Bamban Mayor Alice Guo cannot be a state witness as she is not the “least guilty” in the illegal activities at a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub in the town, according to a ranking Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) official.
PAOCC stated that this is the case unless she points to someone “higher.”
“To be a state witness, one must be the least guilty in the entire conspiratorial chain in the commission of the crime,” PAOCC Spokesperson Winston Casio said in a news forum on Saturday, July 6, 2024.
“Based on the evidence we have now, she is not the least guilty, so we wouldn’t consider that discussion unless we can target someone higher up in the food chain related to this group’s crimes,” he added.
The PAOCC spokesperson noted that it would ultimately be up to the prosecutor to decide whether she can be a state witness.
Guo remains in hot water over her alleged connections to the POGO hubs in Bamban.
Previously, Senator Win Gatchalian stated that Guo cannot be a state witness as she is not the “least guilty.”
“She is at the center of the Hong Sheng POGO hub by applying for the Letter of No Objection and other local government unit (LGU) approvals,” he said.
(el Amigo/mnm)
