MANILA, Philippines – The Anti-Fraud Division of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) arrested in Malate on Tuesday, August 15 executives of a Cebu-based construction firm for allegedly stealing P6 million worth of funds intended to help survivors of Supertyphoon Yolanda in Samar.

Arrested on charges of estafa were engineer Desiderio Estinozo and Nestor Lehetemas of DTE Construction and Development Corporation.  

“To make money out of a calamity is very deplorable and should not be tolerated..I commend the efforts exerted by our NBI agents involved in this case for their arrests of the respondents. Now we can make the wheels of justice move faster,” said Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II.

Hacking

According to information provided by the Department of Justice (DOJ), Spanish non-governmental orgnization InteRed committed to fund the Yolanda-projects of Philippine Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas or PhilDHRRA. 

The fund worth €100,000 or P6 million have been earmarked for repair of schools and health centers in 3 barangays in Guiuan, Eastern Samar. Guian was where Yolanda (international codename Haiyan) first made landfall in November 2013.

Estinozo and Lehetemas are accused of hacking into the email addresses of the parties and revising documents so that the money is deposited not into the bank account of PhilDHRRA, but to the account of construction firm DTE.

In February, charges of estafa were filed against Estinozo, DTE President, and others involved. The Davao City Regional Trial Court (RTC) issued the warrants of arrest on June 15.

“Upon their arrest, the subjects, Engr. Desiderio T. Estinozo and  Nestor O. Lehetemas were immediately brought to the NBI Anti-Fraud Division at the NBI Headquarters where they were booked, photographed and fingerprinted,” the DOJ said. – Rappler.com