Arrest warrants and a hold departure order are now hanging over former House Speaker and Leyte 1st District Representative Martin Romualdez after the Sandiganbayan's Third Division found probable cause to charge him with plunder — an offense that carries no bail and a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. The court's sweeping orders, issued on September 7, 2026, affect three other accused individuals as well.
The anti-graft court acted with unusual speed. According to Sandiganbayan records, the Office of the Ombudsman filed the plunder information before the court on the same day the arrest warrants and hold departure order were signed, both dated September 7, 2026, in Quezon City. The case was raffled to the Third Division, which reviewed the submission and moved almost immediately to authorize the arrests.
Who Is Named in the Case
The court's orders name four accused: Romualdez himself; former Ako Bicol party-list representative Elizaldy "Zaldy" Salcedo Co; Joselyn Tragua Serenio, described in news reports as Romualdez's personal assistant; and Felicito Cristobal Guevarra, reported to be the president of Samchan Foreign Exchange Corp.
As of Monday afternoon, Co had been reported to be at large. None of the four accused had been reported as having surrendered or been taken into custody at the time the court's orders were issued, according to available reports.
Ombudsman Resolved the Case Days Before Court Filing
The Office of the Ombudsman had already indicted all four respondents in a resolution dated September 4, 2026 — three days before prosecutors formally lodged the information with the Sandiganbayan, the minutes of the Third Division's proceedings show.
After evaluating the Ombudsman's indictment resolution, its supporting documentation, and all submitted case records, the Third Division concluded that probable cause existed under Section 5, Rule 112 of the Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure. That finding served as the legal basis for the court to direct the issuance of arrest warrants and the hold departure order against all four accused.
The proceedings were approved by Associate Justice Karl B. Miranda, who chairs the Third Division, alongside Associate Justices Ronald B. Moreno and Fritz Bryn Anthony M. Delos Santos.
Bureau of Immigration Ordered to Bar All Four From Leaving
In its hold departure order, the Sandiganbayan directed the Commissioner of the Bureau of Immigration to immediately enter the names of all four accused in the bureau's Hold Departure List and to prevent them from leaving Philippine territory.
The court grounded its authority on Section 6 of Rule 135 and Section 23 of Rule 114 of the Rules of Court, as well as on the Supreme Court precedent established in Santiago v. Vasquez, 217 SCRA 633. The court cited its inherent power to employ all necessary means to carry its orders into effect, specifically to preserve its jurisdiction over the accused so they remain subject to its processes throughout the proceedings.
A Second Travel Ban — This One Tied to Formal Charges
It is important to note that Monday's hold departure order is legally distinct from an earlier precautionary hold departure order that the Sandiganbayan's Seventh Division had issued against Romualdez back in April, at the Ombudsman's request while the case was still at the preliminary investigation stage.
Romualdez had moved to have that earlier, precautionary order lifted, but the Seventh Division denied the motion in a resolution promulgated in June. The September 7 order from the Third Division is a separate legal instrument — one that flows from the formal filing of the criminal information and the Third Division's own independent finding of probable cause, rather than from a pre-charge precautionary measure.
Allegations: ₱7.44 Billion in Kickbacks Across 15 Transactions
At the heart of the plunder charge are allegations that the four accused received at least ₱7.44 billion in commissions, kickbacks, and other financial benefits on at least 15 separate occasions between 2022 and 2025, according to the Office of the Ombudsman. The funds are alleged to have come from contractors and other parties with interests in flood control, infrastructure, and other government projects.
Investigators have also placed the total alleged accumulation of ill-gotten wealth at approximately ₱56 billion over the same period. The case is formally docketed as E-SB-26-CRM-0074 and charges plunder under Section 2 of Republic Act No. 7080, as amended.
Romualdez, a first cousin of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., stepped down as House Speaker in September 2025. He has consistently denied being the mastermind of any kickback arrangement. His legal counsel, lawyer Ade Fajardo, has publicly stated that Romualdez respects the court's processes and is ready to confront the allegations against him.
PNP-CIDG Yet to Receive Warrant Copy
The Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group said Monday afternoon that it had not yet received a copy of the arrest warrant for Romualdez as of that time, but confirmed that the agency would carry out the warrant's implementation once the official document is transmitted to it.
Because plunder is classified as a non-bailable offense under Philippine law, any of the four accused who are taken into custody would remain in detention throughout the duration of the trial. Courts and legal observers, however, are quick to note that the filing of a criminal information is not equivalent to a finding of guilt — the prosecution still bears the burden of proving the charges during trial, and all of the accused are entitled to the presumption of innocence guaranteed by the Constitution.
By the Numbers
- ₱7.44 billion — minimum amount in alleged commissions and kickbacks received by the accused
- ₱56 billion — estimated total ill-gotten wealth allegedly accumulated, per investigators
- 15 — separate occasions on which the alleged financial benefits were purportedly received
- 2022–2025 — the period during which the alleged offenses took place
- 4 — number of individuals named in the arrest warrants and hold departure order
- September 4, 2026 — date the Ombudsman issued its indictment resolution
- September 7, 2026 — date the case was filed before the Sandiganbayan and the court's orders were signed
Why This Matters
The Sandiganbayan's decision to issue arrest warrants against a former Speaker of the House on a non-bailable plunder charge represents one of the most consequential legal actions taken against a senior Philippine legislative figure in recent memory. With the Bureau of Immigration formally directed to enforce travel restrictions, all four accused are effectively barred from leaving the country while the case proceeds. If any of the accused are taken into custody, they face detention for the duration of a trial that could determine their freedom for the rest of their lives, given that plunder carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment under Republic Act No. 7080.
Source: wire reports