MANILA— The Office of the Ombudsman has filed 36 criminal cases before the Sandiganbayan against six Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) officials and seven private individuals over their alleged involvement in a P491.9-million road right-of-way scam.

The cases involve 18 counts of malversation of public funds through falsification of public documents under Articles 217 and 171 of the Revised Penal Code, and another 18 counts of violating Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

“The office found prima facie evidence with reasonable certainty of conviction against former DPWH Region XII Regional Director Subair Saro Diron, former Assistant Regional Director Laureano B. Suan Jr., and four other DPWH personnel,” the Ombudsman said in a statement.

Seven private individuals were also included in the cases for their alleged participation in the scheme.

The investigation stemmed from three 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 Lagao, General Santos City.

In an affidavit executed in 2017, witness Roberto S. Catapang Jr. claimed he was involved in the alleged syndicate.

“The group… in collusion with respondent public officers, collected money from the government purportedly as payments for the acquisitions, by fabricating and submitting fake documents,” Catapang said in a statement from the Ombudsman.

According to the Ombudsman, the DPWH Region XII technical working group approved the release of P491,931,120.20 to claimants who allegedly submitted falsified documents.

Investigators also found alleged overpricing of right-of-way claims arising from the use of a 2009 property appraisal value of P3,500 per square meter to determine compensation for properties acquired by the government during the 1990s.