CEBU CITY, PHILIPPINES — The Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 27 in Lapu-Lapu City has moved to February 27 the pre-trial of contractor Sarah Discaya, owner of St. Timothy Construction; company president Maria Roma Rimando; and eight officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Davao Occidental District Engineering Office who are facing graft and malversation charges in connection with an alleged ghost flood control project.
The pre-trial was originally scheduled for February 3, 2026, but the defense sought additional time to complete the pre-marking of documentary exhibits. Presiding Judge Nelson Leyco granted the request to allow both the prosecution and the defense sufficient time to go through the evidence.
Leyco allowed at least five pre-marking settings and emphasized that stipulations must include the existence, due execution, and authenticity of documents. Pre-marking, a mandatory pre-trial process, involves identifying, labeling, and organizing documentary or object evidence with the clerk of court to help expedite proceedings and avoid delays during trial.
Discaya and Rimando, along with DPWH officials Rodrigo Larete, Michael Awa, Joel Lumogdang, Harold John Villaver, Jafael Faunillian, Josephine Valdez, Ranulfo Flores, and Czar Ryan Ubungen, are charged with violation of Section 3(e) of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, as well as malversation of public funds through falsification of commercial documents. The charges stem from the alleged ?96.5-million ghost flood control project in Davao Occidental.
All of the accused attended yesterday’s hearing via online conferencing from the Lapu-Lapu City Jail, while their legal counsels appeared in person before the court. Leyco reiterated that virtual attendance is allowed unless the Rules of Court require the accused to appear physically, particularly for document identification or verification, or upon manifestation by the prosecution.
The Office of the Ombudsman–Visayas, which is prosecuting the case, appeared ready for the pre-trial yesterday with a five-page pre-trial brief containing proposed stipulations. However, defense counsel Atty. Joseph Randi Torregosa, representing accused Larete, asked to suspend the pre-trial, noting that as of January 27, both the prosecution and the defense had only begun reviewing the documentary evidence. He also asked the court to direct the prosecution to provide a list of documents to facilitate stipulations.
Ombudsman Officer-in-Charge for Preliminary Investigation Jess Vincent A. Dela Peña informed the court that the documentary evidence amounted to about three pieces of luggage, containing more than 100 files and at least 4,000 pages. Torregosa appealed for ample time to examine what he described as “voluminous” exhibits to determine whether to admit or contest them.
The court granted the motion on the condition that both parties submit a joint pre-trial stipulation on the documentary exhibits, a condition accepted by both the prosecution and the defense.
Pre-marking of exhibits resumed on the afternoon of February 3 and must be completed by February 13. The scheduled pre-marking dates are February 3 to 5, and February 11 and 13. The joint pre-trial stipulation must be filed on or before February 19, while both parties are required to submit a complete list of their documentary exhibits by February 26.
Motions denied
Meanwhile, Leyco has denied the defense’s motion for reconsideration on the denial of their motion to quash. He likewise denied the defense’s motion to conduct an ocular inspection of the alleged ghost project in Davao Occidental.
Earlier, the defense sought to quash the information, arguing that Supreme Court Office of the Court Administrator (OCA) Circular No. 328-2025—which orders the transfer of cases to an RTC outside the judicial region where the accused holds office—does not apply to their case.
The court also set for summary hearing the petitions for bail after the pre-trial on February 27.
| Written by Kristin De Dios
