The Sandiganbayan has scheduled the graft trial of former senator Ramon Bong Revilla Jr. and six co-accused over an alleged P92.8-million ghost flood control project in Bulacan.
The trial will begin on April 7 after the Sandiganbayan Fourth Division completed the pre-trial stage of the case, during which both the prosecution and defense submitted their lists of witnesses and documentary evidence.
Revilla’s co-accused include former officials and employees of the Department of Public Works and Highways Bulacan First District Engineering Office.
They are former assistant district engineer Brice Hernandez, engineers Jaypee Mendoza, Arjay Domasig, and Emelita Juat, finance section chief Juanito Mendoza, and cashier Christina Pineda.
Revilla posted P90,000 bail for the graft charge. However, he remains detained at the New Quezon City Jail in Payatas because he also faces a non-bailable malversation case linked to the same alleged project.
Under Philippine law, a non-bailable offense requires the accused to file a petition for bail and obtain court approval before being granted temporary liberty while the case is pending.
Revilla has yet to submit a bail petition before the Sandiganbayan Third Division, which is handling the malversation case, as he still has a pending motion for reinvestigation before the Office of the Ombudsman.
Prosecutors from the Ombudsman earlier alleged that Revilla and his co-accused facilitated the release of funds for the flood control project in Pandi, Bulacan and declared the project completed despite the alleged absence of actual construction.
Authorities said the accused also falsified accomplishment reports and issued fraudulent billing documents to support the disbursement of project funds.
Revilla has repeatedly denied involvement in the alleged scheme.