The Sandiganbayan's Second Division has issued a warrant of arrest and a hold departure order against Sen. Jinggoy Estrada in connection with plunder and graft charges arising from the alleged misuse of flood control project funds.

Also ordered arrested were former Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Manuel Bonoan, National Capital Region assistant district engineer Denryl Caesar, and former district engineers Manuel Bulusan and Arturo Gonzales Jr.

The Office of the Ombudsman filed the charges following recommendations from the Department of Justice, alleging that Estrada received P573 million in kickbacks linked to flood control projects.

The allegations stemmed from statements made by former DPWH district engineer Bryce Hernandez, who implicated Estrada in the alleged insertion of flood control projects into the national budget. Estrada has denied the accusations.

The case marks the third time Estrada has faced plunder and graft charges. He was previously convicted of one count of direct bribery and one count of indirect bribery in connection with the Priority Development Assistance Fund scam involving businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles.

The Sandiganbayan's issuance of the arrest warrant and hold departure order came a day after the Ombudsman formally announced the filing of charges against Estrada and several former public works officials.