Former Senator Jinggoy Estrada has been arrested and committed to Quezon City Jail by the Sandiganbayan for alleged plunder related to P573 million kickbacks from flood control projects.
Former Senator Jose 'Jinggoy' Estrada has been ordered detained at the Quezon City Jail in Payatas following his arrest on Monday, June 1, 2026, by the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division for plunder charges related to the alleged anomalous implementation of flood control projects.
The anti-graft court issued the warrant of arrest against Estrada and four other co-respondents, including former Public Works and Highways Secretary Manuel Bonoan, and former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) engineers Denryl Cortuna, Arturo Gonzales Jr., and Manny Bulosan. Cortuna, Gonzales, and Bulosan surrendered to authorities on the same day and were also committed to the Quezon City Jail.
Bonoan, however, was temporarily brought to the Philippine National Police (PNP) General Hospital in Camp Crame due to health reasons after his surrender and spent the night there under observation. The charges, according to the Office of the Ombudsman, stem from an intricate mechanism involving illegal budgetary insertions and project allocations within the DPWH infrastructure portfolio for fiscal year 2025.
Estrada is accused of receiving approximately P573 million in kickbacks after funneling government funds into designated infrastructure projects through these budget insertions. The alleged scheme reportedly involved channeling money to flood control projects that were either overpriced, poorly implemented, or entirely fictitious. This case marks the first instance where a high-ranking government official has been detained over irregularities in flood control projects, highlighting the government's intensified crackdown on corruption in public works. Estrada's legal troubles are not new.
In April 2001, he was charged alongside his father, former President Joseph Estrada, in connection with the jueteng scandal. More recently, from June 2014 to August 2024, Estrada was detained for his alleged involvement in the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam, where he supposedly funneled P183 million of his pork barrel funds to fake non-governmental organizations operated by Janet Lim-Napoles in exchange for kickbacks.
In that case, Estrada was acquitted of plunder but was convicted of one count of direct bribery and two counts of indirect bribery, though the Sandiganbayan later reversed these convictions. The current plunder case adds to his long history of legal battles, and he remains in custody pending further proceedings. The arraignment has not yet been set, and Estrada is expected to file a motion for bail in the coming days.
The co-accused are also facing separate graft charges, for which they posted bail last week after the initial arrest warrants were issued
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