NBI looking into yacht used by Alice Guo in departure

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is now looking into the yacht allegedly used by dismissed Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo in her departure from the country, Director Jaime Santiago said Tuesday.

"Ginagawa na po namin 'yan. Ginagawa na po namin (We are doing that already. We are doing that)," Santiago said during the Balitaan sa Harbor View when asked if the NBI is coordinating with local yacht clubs regarding the matter.

According to Santiago, the NBI has already formed a "Task Force Alice Guo," which monitors all developments related to the former mayor.

During Monday's Senate hearing, Guo said they left the Philippines using boats, starting with a yacht in Metro Manila.

However, Guo refused to divulge to the public the name of the person who facilitated their yacht ride and the owner of the same.

She only recalled that the yacht has "wings" stickers.

"Hindi niya nakita 'yung number. Hindi niya nakita 'yung pangalan nung yate. So we will see. We will see kung ano 'yung yate na 'yun," Santiago said.

(She didn't see the yacht number. She didn't see the name of that yacht. So we'll see. We'll see what that yacht is.)

In a separate Senate hearing last Aug. 27, Guo's supposed sister, Shiela Guo, told the senators that they left the Philippines by riding several boats.

READ: TIMELINE: The escape of Alice Guo and her siblings

Shiela said that she, Alice and their supposed brother Wesley were fetched by a van from their farm in Tarlac and they travelled southbound from dinner time to midnight.

She said she does not know the location where they rode a small white boat that brought them out of the country.

The former mayor was arrested in Indonesia on Sept. 4 and arrived in the Philippines on Sept. 6. She is facing a graft case as well as complaints of human trafficking and money laundering.

Other online scams

Meanwhile, former commissioner of the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission (PAGC) Nicasio Conti on Tuesday called for a better approach to identifying and addressing online scams in the Philippines. 

In a press release, Conti, now CEO of Capstone-Intel Corp., stressed that not all online scams are related to POGOs, noting that understanding the distinction is ''crucial to filing appropriate charges and ensuring that the correct regulatory bodies are held accountable.''

“The Philippines is facing a variety of online frauds, many of which have nothing to do with gaming or gambling. Lumping all online scams together under the POGO umbrella allows many non-gaming fraudsters to avoid accountability. The proper identification of each scam type is essential for the correct enforcement of laws,'' Conti said.

Conti said by focusing exclusively on POGOs, the government runs the risk of overlooking other forms of online fraud that are also victimizing thousands of Filipinos daily.

"Each type of scam is governed by different regulatory bodies. For instance, love scams and phishing attacks fall under the jurisdiction of the National Privacy Commission (NPC), while e-commerce fraud is monitored by the DTI. Distinguishing between these crimes ensures that the appropriate legal remedies are pursued and victims receive justice,'' he said.

He urged law enforcement agencies and regulatory bodies to intensify efforts to tackle all forms of online fraud as well as to strengthen public education campaigns to raise awareness about these crimes. — With Anna Felicia Bajo/VDV, GMA Integrated News