Senate to unseal possible evidence from Hernandez
The Senate will unseal on Monday boxes of documents, computer files and other items from former Bulacan engineer Brice Hernandez supporting claims against lawmakers linked to flood control anomalies, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson said on Sunday.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III granted Hernandez, former Bulacan first district assistant engineer, permission to temporarily leave the Senate premises on Saturday to gather evidence on his allegations of payoffs and kickbacks, including to Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Joel Villanueva and former Rep. Mitch Cajayon-Uy. Estrada, Villanueva and Uy had earlier denied the allegations.
Hernandez, one of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) personnel implicated in the issue, is currently detained at the Senate after being cited in contempt by the blue ribbon panel that is now looking into anomalous flood control projects.
“We’re putting everything in order. He brought back items including documents and a computer but these items are sealed for now. We will follow a procedure to preserve the chain of custody so that if the evidence is vital to a case, it will not be compromised,” Lacson, chair of the blue ribbon panel, told dzBB on Sunday, adding that these possible evidence may be presented to the Senate blue ribbon committee’s next hearing on Sept. 23.
“Even if the blue ribbon committee has not finished its probe or has no committee report yet, I will send those pieces of evidence to the ICI (Independent Commission for Infrastructure) to help in its own investigation,” the senator said when asked if Hernandez’s evidence is found to include proof of kickbacks or commissions.
