Sandiganbayan 5th Division issues plunder arrest warrant vs Estrada and Bonoan

The Sandiganbayan Fifth Division on Monday, June 1, 2026, issued an arrest warrant against Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and former Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Manuel Bonoan on the P573 million plunder information filed by the Office of the Ombudsman on May 28. Plunder under Republic Act 7080 is non-bailable when the evidence of guilt is strong, meaning Estrada and Bonoan now face detention exposure on this separate track from the two graft counts where they posted P90,000 bail on May 29 before the Sandiganbayan Second Division. Estrada's counsel filed an Urgent Omnibus Motion Ad Cautelam at the Fifth Division earlier in the day. The motion sought, in the alternative, consolidation with the graft cases, deferment of the arrest warrant pending resolution of the motions, quashal of the plunder information, dismissal with prejudice, or remand to the Office of the Ombudsman for reinvestigation. The court proceeded with the warrant without granting deferment. Estrada becomes the third sitting senator after Juan Ponce Enrile and Ramon Revilla Jr. to face a Sandiganbayan plunder warrant. His prior plunder cases under the Priority Development Assistance Fund scam ended in acquittal in 2017 and dismissal in 2023. The current case rests on the affidavit of former Bulacan 1st District Engineer Brice Hernandez and the sworn testimony of state witnesses former DPWH Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo and former Bulacan 1st District Engineer Henry Alcantara.