(UPDATE) THE National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Monday night took into custody former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bulacan assistant district engineer Brice Hernandez and engineer Jaypee Mendoza following the issuance of arrest warrants by the Sandiganbayan in connection with ghost flood control projects in Pandi, Bulacan.
The Sandiganbayan Third Division ordered the arrest of Hernandez and Mendoza after finding probable cause to charge them with graft and malversation of public funds, stemming from flood control projects that were reportedly paid for but either partially implemented or not built at all.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III confirmed that the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the NBI coordinated with the Senate for the service of the arrest warrants, which he authorized.
NBI personnel served the warrants past 8 p.m. at the Senate detention facility, where the two former DPWH officials had been held for the past four months. Hernandez and Mendoza were transferred to the custody of the NBI Central Office for temporary detention.
The two engineers had been detained at the Senate after being cited in contempt during a Senate inquiry into alleged irregularities in DPWH flood control projects. Lawmakers accused them of giving false or misleading testimony during hearings that investigated claims of padded contracts, falsified accomplishment reports, and the release of public funds for projects that were nonexistent or substandard.
The controversial flood control projects in Pandi, Bulacan became a focal point of the Senate probe amid persistent flooding in the area despite millions of pesos reportedly allocated for mitigation works. Senators earlier said the case exemplified systemic corruption in infrastructure projects, particularly those rushed or approved without proper validation.
With the issuance of the arrest warrants, the case has now moved fully into the judicial arena. The Sandiganbayan, the anti-graft court, will hear the charges against Hernandez and Mendoza, who face potential prison terms and perpetual disqualification from public office if convicted.
Authorities said further legal procedures, including booking and commitment orders, will follow in the coming days.
On Tuesday, Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon took the stand in a bail hearing involving some of former lawmaker Zaldy Co’s co-accused in the malversation through falsification case filed before the Sandiganbayan against them.
“We have confidence in our justice system, we have confidence in the Sandiganbayan that it will really be proven that the project was really substandard,” Dizon said in Filipino and English in a media interview after he testified before the court’s Sixth Division.
Prosecutors had recommended no bail in the case, which stemmed from a road dike construction project in Oriental Mindoro.
Those who have bail petitions were Gerald Pacanan, Gene Ryan Altea, Ruben Santos Jr., Juliet Calvo, Dennis Abagon, Dominic Serrano, Montrexis Tamayo, Lerma Cayco, and Felisardo Casuno.
The other accused were at large.
In November 2025, the Ombudsman charged Co and other persons — including former officials of the DPWH Mimaropa — before the court in connection with a road dike construction project in Oriental Mindoro.
The case docketed as SB-25-CRM-0039, which was filed for alleged violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act against multiple people, was raffled off to the Sandiganbayan’s Fifth Division.
The case for alleged malversation of public funds through falsification of public documents, which was docketed as SB-25-CRM-0041, went to the court’s Sixth Division.
SB-25-CRM-0040, a case against only Co for alleged violation of Section 3(h) of the anti-graft law, was raffled off to the court’s Seventh Division.
Before his testimony at the bail hearing, Dizon said the three former DPWH officials and a contractor are still not free from charges, even if they have been admitted to the government’s Witness Protection Program (WPP).
“Being a state witness does not mean that they are acquitted of all charges but only have immunity from criminal liabilities in cases where they can provide credible evidence for the prosecution,” Dizon said.
Dizon was referring to former DPWH undersecretary Roberto Bernardo, dismissed Bulacan first district engineer Henry Alcantara, former DPWH National Capital Region regional director Gerard Opulencia, and Syms Construction Trading owner and manager Sally Santos.
The four were admitted to the WPP following a thorough evaluation of their testimonies and their readiness to return the kickbacks they got from ghost and anomalous flood control projects.
Dizon expressed confidence that the witnesses were carefully examined and vetted by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of the Ombudsman.
The four state witnesses, he pointed out, have also the duty and obligation to expose the “brain” behind the anomalous flood control projects.
Dizon said he is confident that the government has a “solid” or air-tight case against Co and his co-accused.
“That is the instruction of the president to the DPWH — to ensure that our cases are solid. We believe that we have a solid case. With these cases, we can easily convict the individuals we are now accusing,” he added.
Dizon said that based on the pieces of material and testimonial evidence they would be able to file more solid cases against those linked to the flood control scandal.
Co, along with some DPWH officials and private individuals, including the board of directors of Sunwest Corp., were tagged in an anomalous P289-million road dike project in Oriental Mindoro, which was contracted to Sunwest Corp., a construction firm owned by the Co family.
They are facing charges of malversation through falsification and two counts of graft before the Sandiganbayan. This is the first case against Co since the president exposed anomalous flood control projects in his State of the Nation address in July 2025.
Also named as respondents in the said cases were DPWH Mimaropa Regional Director Gerald Pacanan, Regional Director Gene Ryan Alurin Altea, Assistant Regional Director Ruben delos Santos Jr., Construction Division Chief Dominic Gregorio Serrano, Project Engineer Ill Felisardo Sevare Casuno, Maintenance Division Chief Juliet Cabungan Calvo, Bidding and Awards Committee Accountant IV Lerma Cayco, Bidding and Awards Committee OIC Dennis Abagond, and DPWH Mimaropa Planning and Design Division OIC Montrexis Tamayo.
Co, who is in hiding abroad, had earlier denied all the allegations against him. He also went on YouTube and accused the president and his cousin, former speaker Martin Romualdez, of being behind the flood control bribery scheme.
Malacañang on Tuesday expressed confidence former DPWH secretary Manuel Bonoan would be truthful in his testimony before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.
In a press conference, Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. believes the former Cabinet official would offer only facts in the probe on the massive flood control mess. “The president believes that former secretary Manny Bonoan will tell the truth, especially since he is before the Senate and he is under oath. So, we just need to hope that what he will say is truthful,” Castro said in Filipino. Bonoan has been implicated in the corruption scandal worth billions of pesos. He appeared before the committee where he faced allegations of being one of the masterminds of budget insertions as part of a kickback scheme within the DPWH.