A Philippine court on Thursday handed a life sentence to former Bamban mayor Alice Guo — whom authorities assert is a Chinese citizen — for her role in running an illegal online scam hub in northern Luzon where hundreds of foreign workers were coerced into conducting fraud.
The Pasig Regional Trial Court in Metro Manila found Guo and seven co-defendants from China and the Philippines guilty of human trafficking. Alongside the life terms, each was ordered to pay 2 million pesos (about $34,000) in fines and provide compensation to victims. Guo has denied the accusations and maintains she is Filipino.
In recent years, sprawling online fraud compounds have surged across Southeast Asia, with the U.N. estimating hundreds of thousands trapped and forced into romance scams, fake investments, and illegal gambling schemes. In the Philippines, syndicates set up large facilities—from high-rise offices in Manila to vast compounds in provincial towns—often by bribing officials to move trafficked workers unnoticed.
Investigators say Guo is actually Guo Huaping, a Chinese national who allegedly forged Filipino documents before running for mayor of Bamban in Tarlac province. Authorities say the illegal compound was built near the town hall, where trafficking victims were housed and forced to run online scams.
The crackdown intensified last year after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. banned hundreds of Chinese-linked online gaming operators, accusing them of involvement in trafficking, torture, kidnapping, financial crimes and murder. Thousands of workers have been rescued, though officials warn many scam centers remain active.
Sen. Risa Hontiveros, who led high-profile Senate inquiries that uncovered the operations, called Thursday’s conviction a milestone. “This is a win against corruption, trafficking, cybercrime, and a range of transnational offenses,” she said, while adding that the broader fight is far from over.
Security officials and Hontiveros have also raised concerns that Chinese-run compounds may have been exploited for espionage as tensions escalate between Manila and Beijing over the South China Sea. Guo has not been charged with spying and denies any involvement.
Bamban is situated only a short distance from a Philippine Air Force base where U.S. forces are allowed rotational access under a 2014 defense agreement.
Guo was removed from office last year for grave misconduct by the Ombudsman. She fled the country in mid-2024 but was later located in Indonesia, arrested, and deported back to the Philippines, where she has remained in detention.