The Department of Justice (DOJ) confirmed that a dismissed Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) official and a private contractor have been excluded from criminal charges linked to alleged irregularities in flood control projects in Bulacan.
DOJ spokesperson Polo Martinez said former DPWH Bulacan First District engineer Henry Alcantara was removed from the list of respondents after being admitted into the Witness Protection Program (WPP).
“By virtue of his admission as state witness by the WPP, Henry Alcantara was dropped as respondent and not included in the Information filed in court,” Martinez told reporters.
Martinez added that Sally Santos, owner of Syms Construction Trading, was also not charged.
Both Alcantara and Santos had earlier been designated as state witnesses, along with former DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo and DPWH Region 4B director Gerard Opulencia.
Meanwhile, several other officials remain on trial, including dismissed assistant engineers Brice Hernandez and Jaypee Mendoza of DPWH Bulacan First District.
The graft and malversation cases, initially filed in Bulacan earlier this year, were later transferred to the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 79, which handles corruption-related cases.
According to the DOJ, the accused were arraigned in the first week of March, formally opening trial proceedings. Pretrial hearings have been scheduled for April 13.