One of former House Speaker Martin Romualdez’s two private co-accused in the ₱7.44-billion plunder case reportedly left the Philippines months before the Sandiganbayan issued arrest warrants and hold-departure orders against all four defendants, potentially putting a second accused beyond the court’s reach before authorities could prevent the departure.
According to a DZRH report, the unnamed defendant left the country at a time when no arrest warrant, hold-departure order or derogatory immigration record had yet been issued to prevent the person from traveling. The Sandiganbayan Third Division issued the arrest warrants and hold-departure orders only on Sept. 7, after the Office of the Ombudsman filed the plunder case.
The timing is significant because a hold-departure order is designed to stop an accused from leaving the Philippines. It cannot prevent someone from leaving before the order takes effect.
The report also appears to contradict Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla’s Sept. 16 statement that Romualdez’s two private co-accused, Joselyn Tragua Serenio and Felicito Cristobal Guevarra, were still in the Philippines and remained at large, according to The Philippine Star.
The identity of the co-accused who reportedly left the country has not been made public, leaving it unclear whether authorities are still searching domestically for Serenio or Guevarra.
Serenio, who served as Romualdez’s personal assistant, and Guevarra, president of Samchan Foreign Exchange Corp., were charged alongside Romualdez and former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co in the plunder case filed Sept. 7.
Ombudsman prosecutors accused the four of taking part in a scheme in which Romualdez and Co supposedly received at least ₱7.44 billion in commissions, shares, kickbacks, commitments and other financial benefits on at least 15 occasions from contractors and entities involved in flood-control, infrastructure and other government projects funded from 2022 to 2025.
The criminal Information alleges that funds were delivered to properties owned, occupied by or linked to Romualdez, with Serenio allegedly receiving money on his behalf and for other individuals purportedly acting for him.
Guevarra was separately accused of facilitating simulated dollar-to-peso transactions through Samchan that prosecutors alleged were used in part to finance the purchase of a property at 30 Tamarind Road in South Forbes Park, Makati. Prosecutors further alleged that portions of the ₱7.44 billion were routed through companies and other conduits to acquire properties, corporate shares and other assets for Romualdez’s benefit.
After reviewing the prosecution’s records, the Sandiganbayan Third Division found probable cause on Sept. 7 and issued arrest warrants for Romualdez, Co, Serenio and Guevarra. The court also issued a hold-departure order covering all four, barring them from leaving the Philippines while the case is pending. Only Romualdez has been arrested.
He was taken into custody at Cardinal Santos Medical Center on Sept. 7 and later transferred to the New Quezon City Jail in Payatas after PGH doctors told the court he was clinically stable and no longer required acute-care hospital confinement. Romualdez pleaded not guilty to the plunder charge via videoconference on Sept. 16.
Co, meanwhile, had been out of the Philippines long before the latest plunder case was filed before the Sandiganbayan. He left the country in July 2025 and has yet to return. Earlier this month, Ombudsman Boying Remulla said he would travel to France to meet with authorities and discuss efforts to secure Co’s return.
