The Senate ended the contractor's nine-month contempt detention by turning him over to police; a court will now decide whether the man who says he exposed the scheme can post bail.
Flood control contractor Pacifico "Curlee" Discaya II was transferred from the Senate to the Bulacan Provincial Jail on Monday, June 9, to face non-bailable graft and malversation charges tied to a ₱53.9-million flood control project in Calumpit, Bulacan — ending more than nine months of detention in Senate custody and moving the country's most prominent contractor-witness from a legislative cell into the criminal justice system.
Discaya, who had been held at the Senate since September after being cited in contempt by the Blue Ribbon Committee over inconsistent testimony, was fetched from the Senate at around 7 a.m. and brought to Bulacan for inquest proceedings and turnover to local authorities, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. He arrived at the Bulacan Regional Trial Court compound in the City of Malolos shortly after Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, who personally led the turnover at about 10 a.m.
"It is up to the court to decide where Curlee Discaya will ultimately be detained. But this is to show that he will be treated the same as any ordinary person deprived of liberty and not as a VIP," Remulla told reporters, according to the Inquirer.
The charges
The Office of the Ombudsman filed graft and malversation charges on June 4 against Discaya, his wife Cezarah "Sarah" Discaya, and nine others — mostly current and former officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bulacan First District Engineering Office. Investigators found that payments for the Calumpit flood control project were released despite the absence of an approved disbursement voucher. A Bulacan court issued the non-bailable arrest warrant on June 5.
The Ombudsman identified the Discaya couple as the beneficial owners of St. Timothy Construction Corp. Also charged were the company's managing officer, Ma. Angeline Discaya-Rimando, and DPWH officials Merg Jaron Caparas Laus, Brice Ericson Diaz Hernandez, Jaypee De Leon Mendoza, Ernesto Cosay Galang, Norberto de Leon Santos, Lorenzo Alcoriza Pagtalunan, Juanito Coronel Mendoza, and Floralyn Yutuc Simbulan. According to the Inquirer, Remulla said all respondents were in custody except Galang and Pagtalunan, who remain at large. The case will be heard by Judge Mirasol Ong Dychingco of Bulacan RTC Branch 20.
Sarah Discaya is separately detained at the Lapu-Lapu City Jail over an alleged ₱96.5-million "ghost" flood control project in Davao Occidental, the Inquirer reported.
'He will name 150'
Curlee Discaya's lawyer, Cornelio Samaniego, said the defense would seek his client's temporary release through bail, arguing that a non-bailable classification does not automatically bar bail. "Not all offenses classified as nonbailable automatically mean bail cannot be granted," Samaniego said. "We will file a petition for bail and demonstrate that the evidence against him is not strong."
The lawyer also confirmed earlier reports that Discaya is prepared to identify as many as 150 additional individuals allegedly involved in the flood control controversy. Samaniego said his client was unable to recall all the names immediately after his arrest, but that his prolonged Senate detention gave him time to piece the information together. "The names came back to him one by one. Let's just wait for him to reveal them when the proper time comes," Samaniego said.
Samaniego framed his client as a cooperating witness who has turned against the system. "He gave names and exposed the system in the DPWH, but this is what he gets in return," the lawyer said, adding that Discaya was disappointed by the turn of events. That characterization sits uneasily against the Ombudsman's case, which treats Discaya as a beneficial owner of the firms that won the contracts at the center of the alleged fraud — and the contractor has not been granted immunity. Whether prosecutors ultimately treat him as an accused or a state witness remains unresolved.
Context
The Discayas were investigated last year over construction firms linked to suspected anomalous infrastructure projects nationwide. Two of their companies, Alpha & Omega and St. Timothy, ranked among the top 15 contractors that cornered the most flood control projects nationwide, according to a list released by Malacañang. The Calumpit charges are among the first criminal cases over the multibillion-peso scandal to advance to a trial court, following the Ombudsman's June 4 filing against the couple and the eight DPWH Bulacan officials previously reported.
The turnover also comes amid a paralyzing Senate leadership dispute, raising questions about the chamber's continued role as a venue for the flood control inquiry now that its most high-profile detained witness has been moved into court custody.
Sources
- Carmela Reyes-Estrope, "Curlee Discaya leaves Senate for Bulacan jail," Philippine Daily Inquirer, June 9, 2026 — link
- "Discaya ready to name 150 cohorts, lawyer says," The Manila Times, June 9, 2026 — link
- "Curlee Discaya turned over to police after 9-month detention at Senate," Rappler, June 2026 — link
- "Curlee Discaya taken into PNP custody after Senate turnover," The Manila Times, June 9, 2026 — link
- "Ombudsman files graft, malversation raps vs Discayas, DPWH officials," Philstar.com, June 4, 2026 — link