Government contractor Sarah Discaya surrendered to the National Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday morning as the administration moves closer to issuing arrest warrants over the P96.5-million Davao Occidental flood control project that was fully paid but never built.
Lawyer Cornelio Samaniego said Discaya appeared at the NBI despite the absence of a warrant. “Wala siya tinatago,” he said, adding that he accompanied her during the surrender.
President Bongbong Marcos earlier said a warrant of arrest for the billionaire contractor was expected within the week following graft and malversation charges filed by the Office of the Ombudsman against Discaya and nine others.
Ma. Roma Angeline Rimando, an executive of the Discaya-owned St. Timothy Construction, also surrendered. Samaniego confirmed that Rimando turned herself in at the Pasig City Police Station on Monday night while anticipating an arrest warrant tied to the same case.
“She thought it best just voluntarily to surrender to the authorities to avoid harassment or whatever if there’s a warrant of arrest against her because she doesn’t want to be like others already in custody over flood control project anomalies,” Samaniego said. He added that Rimando surrendered her Philippine passport to Pasig City police chief Colonel Hendrix Mangaldan to show she does not intend to leave the country.
Samaniego said Rimando is now under the care of Mangaldan at the Pasig City police headquarters while awaiting the impending warrant. Once a warrant is issued, the St. Timothy executive will be turned over to the proper court.
The complaints stem from a project in Davao Occidental that state auditors identified as a ghost infrastructure despite full payment. The Ombudsman’s filings placed Discaya, Rimando and several Public Works and Highways officials at the center of the alleged scheme.
One of Rimando’s co-respondents in the case has also surrendered to authorities, according to Samaniego, as the investigation continues and warrants are prepared for release.
