Former Public Works district engineer Henry Alcantara and contractor Sally Santos of SYMS Construction Trading have been removed as respondents in the Bulacan graft and malversation case after being admitted as state witnesses.

Justice department spokesperson Polo Martinez said their exclusion was due to their acceptance into the government’s Witness Protection Program.

Alcantara and Santos were designated as state witnesses in January, alongside former DPWH undersecretary Roberto Bernardo and former regional director Gerard Opulencia.