The Office of the Ombudsman has filed a total of 36 criminal charges before the Sandiganbayan against six former officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region 12 and seven private individuals over an alleged P491-million road right-of-way (ROW) scam in General Santos City.
The charges consist of 18 counts of malversation of public funds through falsification of public documents and another 18 counts of violation of Section 3(e) of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Among those charged were former DPWH Region 12 Regional Director Subair Saro Diron and former Assistant Regional Director Laureano B. Suan Jr., along with other agency personnel and private individuals allegedly involved in the scheme.
The cases stemmed from three investigation reports submitted by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in 2018 and 2019 concerning payments for the acquisition of 18 parcels of land allegedly affected by the construction of the Digos-Makar National Road in Barangay Lagao, General Santos City.
According to the Ombudsman, the DPWH Region 12 Technical Working Group approved the release of P491,931,120.20 in compensation to claimants who were later found to have submitted falsified documents in support of their claims.
In an affidavit executed in 2017, witness Roberto S. Catapang Jr. admitted his involvement in the alleged syndicate, claiming that the group conspired with government officials to obtain public funds by fabricating and submitting fraudulent documents purportedly supporting land acquisitions.
Investigators also discovered that a 2009 property appraisal value of P3,500 per square meter was allegedly used to determine compensation for properties acquired by the government in the early 1990s, resulting in inflated right-of-way claims.
Meanwhile, in a separate administrative ruling, the Ombudsman ordered the dismissal from government service of former DPWH Region 12 Legal Officer Ansare Mariga Busran in connection with the controversy.
