Police have arrested Emelita Juat, the last remaining co-accused of former senator Bong Revilla in the corruption case over a P92.8-million anomalous flood control project in Bulacan.
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) confirmed the arrest of Emelita Juat, 64, the last co-accused of former senator Bong Revilla in the corruption case linked to a P92.8-million anomalous flood control project in Bulacan. According to a spot report from Police Regional Office 3, Juat was apprehended in Obando, Bulacan, around 11 p.m. on January 20.
“Andon na sila lahat ngayon… si Juat arrested na,” Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla told reporters on January 21. (All of them are now accounted for… Juat has been arrested.) Juat is among the five co-accused sought by the Sandiganbayan after it issued arrest warrants on January 19 for malversation and graft. The others include former Department of Public Works and Highways engineers Brice Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza.
Revilla surrendered to police on January 19 in Quezon City, while Hernandez and Mendoza were already in Senate custody when the warrants were issued. On January 20, the Sandiganbayan Third Special Division ordered Revilla detained at the male dormitory of the Quezon City Jail in Payatas.
The project involved a flood control initiative in Pandi, Bulacan, from which the accused allegedly took a P76.9-million cut. Another co-accused, Christina Mae del Rosario Pineda, 38, was arrested early on January 21 in Benguet along Halsema Highway in Buguias. All co-accused are now in custody.
The case forms part of a broader probe into irregularities in Bulacan flood control projects, with the Commission on Audit flagging four projects worth P325 million. No contradictions appear across reports from the sources.