Alice Leal Guo (; IPA: ; born August 31, 1990,) is a Chinese convicted criminal, businesswoman, and former politician in the Philippines who served as the de facto mayor of Bamban, Tarlac, from June 30, 2022, to August 13, 2024.
Guo was accused of being a Chinese spy, though The Economist states that these allegations were unlikely to be true. She has also faced investigations over her alleged involvement in illegal gambling and other criminal activities. In June 2024, she was suspended for up to six months as mayor by the Ombudsman after the Department of the Interior and Local Government filed graft charges against her over alleged connections with Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) activities in her municipality. She was dismissed by the Ombudsman on August 13, 2024. In a Senate committee inquiry following the raids in Bamban in 2023 and 2024, Guo was alleged by senators Risa Hontiveros and Win Gatchalian to have links to illegal POGO activities. Her Filipino citizenship was also questioned and investigated due to inconsistencies in her documents and testimony.
In July 2024, Guo's assets were frozen, and an arrest order was issued for her. In August, it was reported that she had fled the Philippines on July 17 for Malaysia, then traveled to Singapore, and finally to Indonesia. She was arrested there on September 3 and deported back to the Philippines on September 5, where she was detained in police custody. , she was on trial in six separate cases that could lead to decades in prison, and she had been barred from running for public office again. She pleaded not guilty to human trafficking charges. In June 2025, Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 34 declared her term as mayor null and void ab initio, rendering her tenure de facto and ruling that she was, in fact, a Chinese citizen.
Guo was convicted of human trafficking on November 20, 2025, and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Early life and background Birth and ancestry Details of Guo's early life and educational background are disputed. Guo stated that she was born at her home, whose location she does not recall, or, according to her birth certificate, in Barangay Matatalaib in the then-municipality of Tarlac, Philippines, on August 31, 1990, originally thought to be July 12, 1986; her family's Special Investors Resident Visa (SIRV) application documents placed her birthplace at Jinjiang, Fujian, China. The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) also revealed the existence of three individuals named Alice Leal Guo, all born on July 12, 1986. One of these individuals has a different physical appearance from her. Residents at the reported address of the second Alice Guo in Quezon City stated they were unaware of anyone named Alice Guo residing there. The NBI later confirmed that the fingerprints of Mayor Alice Guo and Chinese national Guo Hua Ping matched, confirming that they are the same person.
Guo asserts her father's ethnicity as Chinese and states he was 70 years old as of 2024, but discrepancies about his citizenship are evident from various documents. His birth certificate identifies him as Filipino, named Angelito Guo, while his business records list him as a Chinese citizen named Jian Zhong Guo, born in 1958. Guo's mother's identity is also in question; she is either a Filipino housemaid named Amelia Leal Guo, as per Guo's claim and birth certificate, or a Chinese businesswoman named Lin Wen Yi (born 1971), based on sources in Valenzuela and the Guo family's SIRV application documents. Guo claimed to be her father's illegitimate child with Amelia, resulting in her being raised by her father in seclusion on a pig farm in Tarlac City. However, discrepancies arose when the birth certificates of Guo, Chinese national Zhang Mier alias Shiela Leal Guo (born 1984), and Seimen Leal Guo (born 1988 or 1990) revealed discrepancies in the ages of Angelito and Amelia Guo at their children's births, along with two differing marriage dates in Tarlac. Furthermore, the couple was found to have no existing birth and marriage records in the Philippine Statistics Authority. Jian Zhong Guo and Lin Wen Yi are co-incorporators in multiple businesses with Guo, claiming the same address in Quezon City according to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) records. Guo had initially denied that Lin was her biological mother and insisted that Amelia exists, but later admitted that Jian Zhong Guo is her father. She categorically denied Lin Wen Yi to be her mother.
Guo initially denied knowing Shiela and Seimen Guo, but Bureau of Immigration (BI) records suggest they had traveled abroad together. She later confirmed them as her paternal half-siblings, despite their birth certificates suggesting they are full siblings. However, both Guo and Shiela later separately denied being biological sisters, with Shiela claiming that Jian Zhong Guo is her foster father. It was later revealed that Guo has another full sibling named Wesley (born 1990, also known as Guo Xiang Dian according to the NBI) and reportedly five more siblings.
In July 2024, Solicitor-General Menardo Guevarra filed a petition to cancel the birth certificate for Guo issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), following doubts raised about her origins and citizenship. On October 4, 2024, Guo's Philippine passport was cancelled by the Department of Foreign Affairs, citing fraudulent circumstances in its acquisition.
On December 17, 2024, Guo, her parents, and her two siblings were sued by the NBI before the Department of Justice (DOJ) for falsification and violation of the Anti-Dummy Law on foreign land ownership. The NBI alleged that the Guos falsely claimed Filipino citizenship and residency to acquire four parcels of land in Mangatarem, Pangasinan. On September 24, 2025, Guo's birth certificate was cancelled by the Tarlac City Regional Trial Court Branch 111.
Education and childhood Some residents of Bamban, including those from Barangay Virgen de los Remedios, said that Guo lived and grew up there, adding that she also has a sibling. Guo has stated that her family raised pigs for a living and that she grew up on a farm. She also claimed to have spent her teenage life in Concepcion, Tarlac. Furthermore, registration records of her companies showed that she had residency in Marilao, Bulacan, and Valenzuela, Metro Manila, citing her parents' embroidery business in the latter. However, it was revealed that no such business existed, and her listed home address in Valenzuela belonged to a certain Bayle family, according to Senator Win Gatchalian.
Guo stated during a testimony at a joint Philippine Senate Committee investigation that she was homeschooled. However, her birth was only registered on November 22, 2005, casting doubts on her early life due to the absence of hospital birth records, her inability to identify her homeschool provider, and traditional educational records, prompting inquiries into the nature of her education. It was later revealed that Guo attended Grace Christian High School (now Grace Christian College) from 2000 to 2003, covering Grades 1 to 3, according to her school enrollment forms. According to one of her classmates, she was known by her Chinese name, attended special classes for Filipino subjects, took a higher grade level for her Chinese classes, and completed the Chinese curriculum despite struggling with English.
Her failure to recall details of her birth and early life during the Senate inquiry led to online ridicule, with Guo being dubbed My Amnesia Girl (a Philippine romantic comedy film from 2010) in a popular meme.
Residency and citizenship According to Guo's Certificate of Candidacy for Mayor filed before the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) in 2021, she declared herself unmarried and claimed lifelong residency in the Philippines, residing at her registered address in Bamban for 18 years by that time. It was revealed that she registered as a voter of Bamban in April 2021, just 13 months before the 2022 general elections, while COMELEC spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco said that she had registered in 2018. She also claimed to have held a Philippine passport, the only one she possesses, since she was between 17 and 19 years old, around 2003 to 2005. Her family's SIRV application documents indicate that, as Guo Hua Ping, she also holds a Chinese passport and migrated to the Philippines on January 12, 2003, at the age of . On August 6, 2024, the COMELEC approved the filing of a criminal complaint on misrepresentation grounds against Guo after an investigation found that her fingerprints matched those of Guo Hua Ping. The complaint was formally presented before a court in Tarlac on October 28, 2024.
Business career Before venturing into politics, Guo has an extensive background as a businesswoman, serving as an incorporator and holding significant shares in at least 11 companies since 2010, according to Securities and Exchange Commission records.
Air taxi venture In the 2024 Senate inquiry, Guo admitted to owning a helicopter, which she acquired in 2019 and sold in 2024 to an undisclosed British firm. She said she meant to use the helicopter for an air taxi business but was compelled to sell the aircraft after the venture did not meet their expectations.
Car dealership Westcars Incorporated is one of the businesses affiliated with Guo. It is a car dealership registered on March 16, 2016. Senator Risa Hontiveros, in the 2024 Senate inquiry, has alleged that Guo owns 16 vehicles, which include sports utility vehicles, vans, and trucks, which Guo reasoned are associated with the Westcars venture.
Involvement in POGOs
Starting in June 2024, Guo faced cases in the Senate, the DOJ, the Ombudsman, and the courts. Senator Win Gatchalian revealed Guo's alleged links with the firm Zun Yuan Technology, Inc., an online casino firm that was registered in the Philippines as a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO). Prior to her election in 2022, Guo had applied for the license of Hongsheng Gaming Technology, Inc.; and in late 2020, the Bamban municipal council approved its establishment and operation. Hongsheng had its license to operate cancelled by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) by 2022. In 2019, Baofu Land Development was incorporated by Guo, Zhang Ruijin, and Lin Baoying, with Rachel Joan Malonzo Carreon and a Cypriot national, Huang Zhiyang. Furthermore, Guo was reportedly spotted with a Bulgari Serpenti Viper necklace worth (), a Louis Vuitton silk shirt, and a Chanel bag.
The POGO hub is situated in the property which is owned by Baofu Land Development, Inc. and is located behind the municipal building in Barangay Anupul, Bamban, was twice raided by the authorities: in February 2023, for alleged involvement in cryptocurrency investment scams; and in March 2024, due to allegations of human trafficking and other cybercrimes; at that time, it had been renamed Zun Yuan.
In May 2024, during a Senate inquiry, senators said that the POGO compound housed "mercenaries" allegedly involved in cybercrimes and surveillance activities, citing intelligence reports. Meanwhile, Guo countered allegations against her, stating that she was the former landowner of the property, and her vehicle, found within the compound, was sold in 2020. Guo stated that, being one of the incorporators of Baofu, she later sold her shares upon entering politics.
During the inquiry, Senator Risa Hontiveros suggested that Guo may be a Chinese "asset" trained to infiltrate the Philippine government and "have an influence in Philippine politics". In response to the allegations, Guo expressed dismay, saying that she had been "judged prematurely" via a trial by publicity. Guo stressed that she was "not a coddler, not a protector of POGOs", adding in a subsequent interview by Karen Davila that she had been rattled by senators' questions about her private life and was opposed to POGOs.