Philippines and Indonesia in talks over possible prisoner swap involving fugitive former Filipino mayor Alice Guo

JAKARTA: Philippine and Indonesian authorities are discussing a potential prisoner swap involving fugitive former mayor Alice Guo and an Australian drug smuggling suspect wanted by Jakarta.
Accused of links to Chinese criminal syndicates, Guo was arrested on Tuesday (Sep 3) in Tangerang City – on the outskirts of Jakarta – after over a month on the run. She is wanted by the Philippine Senate for refusing to attend a congressional probe on her alleged criminal ties.
Indonesia will on Thursday deport the fugitive former Philippine mayor accused of human trafficking and links to Chinese organised crime, an Indonesian police official said.
“She (Alice Guo) will be handed to the Philippines authorities and picked up directly by their interior minister and head of the police,” Inspector General Krishna Murti, head of the Indonesian national police’s international relations division, told reporters.
“She will be flown back to Manila tonight.”
Jakarta has expressed hope that Manila will reciprocate by extraditing Gregor Haas, a fugitive wanted by Indonesia’s anti-drug agency. The Australian national was arrested in Cebu in May, and has been accused of drug trafficking.
“We hope that the Philippine government will cooperate by handing over Haas,” Inspector General Krishna Murti,  told Indonesian news outlet Kompas on Wednesday.
“This matter is still under negotiation for an official exchange.”
Philippine Department of Justice officials clarified on Thursday (Sep 5) that Indonesia has not lodged a formal request for a prisoner swap.
“There’s no official request from Indonesia regarding the prisoner swap that is being talked about,” Justice Undersecretary Nicky Ty said in an interview on Dobol B TV as reported by GMA News Online. He added that it was only a “possibility”.
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Right now we’re still hoping that Alice Guo will be immediately deported,” he added.
In a statement on Wednesday, Guo’s lawyer Stephen David said his legal team was relieved about Guo’s safe apprehension.
“This is a welcome development for us so that we can answer the allegations and issues thrown against her. As her counsel, we are deeply concerned about her health, safety and security,” said Mr David as reported by Filipino news outlets.
“She may not know or realise it by now, but this recent event can be a good start for all her cases,” he added.
The Senate launched an investigation in May after a casino raid in Bamban in March uncovered what law enforcement officials said were scams run from a facility built on land Guo partly owned.
Philippine law enforcement agencies, including the Anti-Money Laundering Council, last month jointly filed multiple counts of money laundering against Guo and 35 others to the justice department.
They accused Guo and her co-conspirators of having laundered criminal proceeds amounting to more than 100 million pesos (US$1.8 million).
Guo, who says she is a natural-born Philippine citizen, has denied the accusations, calling them “malicious”.
Guo ran for office as a Philippine citizen but her fingerprints were later found to match those of a Chinese national, Guo Hua Ping.
Removed from office as mayor of Bamban town in the province of Tarlac, Guo fled the country in July, travelling on her Philippine passport to neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore, before going to Indonesia in August, the anti-crime agency says.
Guo was arrested along with a Chinese monk and was helped by a former Chinese police officer during her escape from the Philippines, Mr Supratman said on Wednesday, but gave no details.
After her return, Guo, who cut her hair short in an attempt at disguise, will be handed to law enforcement and then the Senate, said Mr Jaime Santiago, director of the National Bureau of Investigation.