The Supreme Court has temporarily halted proceedings in the high-profile P239.73 million graft and malversation case involving Cebu City Administrator Floro Casas Jr. and 10 other co-accused, after issuing a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the Sandiganbayan on 17 December 2025.

The order, issued by the Court’s First Division, stops the Sandiganbayan from proceeding with the criminal case, which alleges that Casas and other city officials colluded with a private contractor to approve inflated garbage disposal billings that defrauded the Cebu City government of more than P239.7 million.

According to the Office of the Ombudsman, city officials from 2012 to 2021 approved payments to DOCAST Construction/JJ and J Construction and General Supply amounting to P1,800 per ton of garbage, or three times the contracted rate of P600 per ton. The Ombudsman accused the officials of “repeatedly failing to review and verify” the billings, resulting in the contractor receiving “unwarranted benefits.”

Court records show that Casas, six other city officials, and three contractor executives face one count of violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (Republic Act No. 3019) and one count of malversation of public funds. Prosecutors sought P90,000 bail for the graft charge and recommended no bail for the non-bailable malversation offense.

In a late legal move, Casas petitioned the Supreme Court to nullify the Ombudsman’s findings. Filed on November 28—the same day the cases were raffled to Sandiganbayan divisions—the petition argued that the Ombudsman’s February 4, 2025 resolution and the subsequent October 2 order denying his appeal were issued with “grave abuse of discretion.”

While the High Court has yet to rule on the merits of the petition, it found the plea for immediate relief sufficient to warrant a temporary halt. The TRO took effect after Casas posted a P1 million bond and will remain in place “until further orders,” potentially extending beyond the usual 72-hour period.

The Court also directed respondents, including Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla, former acting Ombudsman Dante Vargas, and the Sandiganbayan, to submit their comments on the petition within 10 days.

The legal intervention places on hold the case built by Graft Investigation Officer Carla Chaves-Gonzaga, delaying trial proceedings in one of the largest alleged corruption scandals involving Cebu City in recent years.

The Supreme Court’s forthcoming review will determine whether the Ombudsman’s investigation was flawed, as Casas claims, or whether the P239.73 million garbage disposal case will proceed to trial.