Sen. Jinggoy Estrada arrives at the Sandiganbayan in Quezon City for his arraignment on graft charges on Tuesday (June 2, 2026), which was reset to June 4 after co-accused former Public Works and Highways Secretary Manuel Bonoan sought a postponement due to health concerns. (PNA photo by Robert Alfiler)
Senator Jinggoy Estrada asked the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division to reconsider its refusal to fix bail in his plunder case involving alleged irregularities in government infrastructure allocations.
Estrada, through his lawyers, filed a motion for reconsideration on Monday challenging the anti-graft court’s July 24 resolution.
Prosecutors accused him of involvement in an alleged scheme involving budget insertions and project allocations worth Php 573 million under the Department of Public Works and Highways’ 2025 infrastructure program.
Estrada argued that he was not a flight risk and cited the Supreme Court’s 2015 decision granting bail to then Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile in a separate plunder case.
He maintained that the Enrile ruling recognized the absence of flight risk as a basis for granting temporary liberty even before a full determination of the strength of the prosecution’s evidence.
The Sandiganbayan earlier ruled that Estrada’s likelihood of fleeing was not the controlling issue, saying the court must first assess whether the evidence of guilt was strong through a bail hearing.
Estrada countered that his situation was comparable to Enrile’s and argued that granting bail to an accused who was unlikely to flee would not undermine the administration of justice.
The same division had also denied Estrada’s request to take part in the Senate impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte while his plunder case remained pending.
