SC: Cases vs. Sarah Discaya, others transferred to Lapu-Lapu City

The Supreme Court (SC) said Wednesday that two cases filed against contractor Sarah Discaya and DPWH-Davao Occidental engineers were transferred to the Lapu-Lapu City regional trial court.

SC spokesperson Atty. Camille Ting said this is in accordance with guidelines that corruption-related cases from infrastructure projects must be forwarded to the nearest designated anti-graft court of the nearest judicial region.

“The determination of the nearest judicial region shall be made by the presiding or executive judge concerned,” Ting told reporters.

To recall, the SC previously designated several regional trial courts to handle anti-graft cases.

In early December, the Office of the Ombudsman charged Discaya and others over a P96.5-million ghost flood control project in the Davao Occidental. 

Discaya is currently under the custody of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

Discaya surrendered to the NBI last week after President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said that an arrest warrant is set to be issued against her over anomalous flood control projects.

However, Acting Director Angelito “Lito” Magno has said that Discaya may still leave the NBI premises as the court has yet to issue an arrest warrant against her.

For their part, her camp has dubbed the surrender as a “strategic legal move” and not an admission of wrongdoing. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News