Remulla hit with new detention, graft rap over Alice Guo arrest
MANILA, Philippines — Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla faced a fresh complaint of arbitrary detention, three days after the Office of the Ombudsman dismissed a similar case tied to the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Lawyer Ferdinand Topacio lodged the complaint on Monday, September 15, at the Office of the Ombudsman, naming both Remulla and National Bureau of Investigation Director Jaime Santiago as respondents.
Topacio alleged that the two unlawfully arrested and detained former Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo and Whirlwind Corp. incorporator Cassandra Ong, who have been linked to alleged illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) activities in Bamban, Tarlac, and Porac, Pampanga.
Arbitrary detention claims. According to the complaint, Guo and Ong were arrested without a warrant at the NBI headquarters on Aug. 22, 2024.
Topacio said agents lacked personal knowledge of any crime and did not catch the two in flagrante delicto, or in the act of committing a crime.
The arrests, reportedly for violations of the Passport Law and obstruction of justice, had no clear legal basis, Topacio argued. He quoted Santiago as saying he pursued the detention on Remulla’s orders.
“When I personally queried respondent Santiago about the cause of my client's detention as early as the time where I met my client at the Bureau of Immigration offices in Manila, I was informed that, despite the clear legal and procedural infirmities in both the arrests and detention of Ms. Guo and Ms. Ong, respondent Santiago only pushed through with the same because he was ordered to do so by respondent Remulla,” Topacio’s complaint-affidavit read.
Graft allegations. Topacio also accused Remulla and Santiago of violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, saying their actions caused “undue injury” to Guo and Ong.
He alleged they acted “with manifest partiality, evident bad faith or gross inexcusable negligence,” depriving the two of liberty without legal grounds.
On the same day. This was the second complaint filed against Remulla the same day. Acting Davao Mayor Sebastian Duterte earlier filed kidnapping and detention charges against him and other officials over the ICC arrest of his father.
Remulla dismissed the complaints as “an organized effort” to derail his candidacy for Ombudsman.
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