Leviste adds respondents in complaint vs. DPWH engineer Calalo

Batangas First District Representative Leandro Leviste has included two more individuals as respondents in the complaint he filed against Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) District Engineer Abelardo Calalo for alleged bribery.

In a Facebook post, the Office of Leviste said the congressman filed a reply affidavit with a supplemental complaint-affidavit against Elrey Jose Noche and Marciana Noche, owners of TopTech Trading & Construction Co., Inc.

He said TopTech is the contractor of the projects listed on the paper accompanying the cash brought by Calalo.

"What Engineer Calalo referred to as a 'donation' included a piece of paper that said the P3,126,900.00 cash was 3% of the P104,230,000.00 price of 3 contracts awarded by DPWH to TopTech Trading & Construction Co., Inc.," he said.

"This company is owned by Elrey Jose C. Noche and Marciana M. Noche, whom I have asked the Prosecutor to implead as additional respondents and to issue subpoenas requiring them to appear and submit their counter-affidavits," he added.

GMA News Online reached out to a publicly listed phone number under TopTech Trading & Construction Co., Inc, but calls and messages were not answered as of posting time. A Facebook account linked to this company was unavailable.

Last August, Leviste filed a complaint against Calalo after he allegedly tried to dissuade him from launching a probe into anomalous projects.

He filed a complaint for direct bribery, corruption of public officials, violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and violation of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials with the Batangas Provincial Prosecutor's Office.

For his part, Calalo has submitted his counter-affidavit and denied Leviste's allegations in the graft and corruption complaint filed against him. — VDV, GMA Integrated News