Ombudsman Is Heading to France for Zaldy Co — But a New ₱7.4-Billion Arrest Warrant Changes the Stakes
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government’s pursuit of former Ako Bicol party-list representative Elizaldy “Zaldy” Co is increasingly shifting from Manila’s courtrooms to the diplomatic corridors of Paris.
Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said he intends to travel to France in the coming days to speak with French authorities as the government continues efforts to bring Co back to the Philippines, where the former lawmaker is facing multiple criminal cases linked to alleged irregularities in government infrastructure spending.
Remulla said he plans to coordinate particularly with French justice officials and argue that France should not develop a reputation as a refuge for people accused of hiding wealth allegedly stolen from public funds.
The announcement comes as the legal pressure on Co sharply escalates.
New ₱7.4-billion plunder case raises the stakes
On September 7, the Office of the Ombudsman filed a ₱7.4-billion plunder case before the Sandiganbayan against former House Speaker Martin Romualdez, Co and two other accused.
Prosecutors allege that Romualdez and Co repeatedly received commissions, kickbacks and other financial benefits connected with flood-control, infrastructure and other government-funded projects between 2022 and 2025.
Hours after the case was filed, the Sandiganbayan Third Division issued warrants of arrest against the accused, including Co. The court emphasized that issuing a warrant means it found probable cause based on the records before it, but does not amount to a determination of guilt. All accused remain entitled to the constitutional presumption of innocence.
Associated Press reported that the wider flood-control controversy has placed thousands of government projects under scrutiny, with allegations involving projects that were overpriced, substandard or never constructed.
Co has previously denied accusations against him.
Why France has become central to the manhunt
Co’s whereabouts have been the subject of months of government tracking across Europe.
In April, Philippine officials announced that Co had been intercepted and held by Czech authorities over issues involving his travel documents. But the situation changed days later when Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida confirmed that Co was no longer in Czech custody.
Malacañang subsequently said it had received information that Co had a pending application for political asylum in France. The Department of Foreign Affairs later said information placing Co in Paris came from what Foreign Affairs Secretary Theresa Lazaro described as a highly regarded diplomatic source.
At the time, however, Philippine officials said there had been no publicly confirmed physical sighting of Co by the embassy.
Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla later claimed that Co was staying in a large residence along Paris’ famed Champs-Élysées, although that assertion was based on government intelligence and has not been independently established in court.
That complicated history helps explain why Ombudsman Remulla’s planned visit to France could become significant.
No announced repatriation deal yet
While the Ombudsman has spoken strongly about bringing Co back to face the Philippine justice system, current reports do not describe a completed agreement with France for Co’s surrender or repatriation.
Remulla said Monday that he would personally talk with French authorities and their justice ministry.
He also said he had no current information on whether Co — or Senator Loren Legarda, whom he also discussed during the press conference — had already secured asylum.
That statement does not erase Malacañang’s earlier April announcement that Co had a pending asylum petition; rather, it shows that the Ombudsman had no updated information on the status of such an application when he spoke on September 7.
Until French authorities act, the precise mechanism by which Co could be returned to Philippine jurisdiction remains a critical unanswered part of the case.
Co also faces separate flood-control cases
The newly filed plunder case is not Co’s only legal problem.
The Ombudsman filed additional graft and malversation charges in August involving an alleged ₱77-million riverbank protection project in Balagtas, Bulacan that investigators said was declared completed even though an inspection allegedly found the project nonexistent.
Prosecutors alleged that Co played an indispensable role in the scheme through his involvement in putting the project into the government spending program. These remain allegations that must be proven in court.
Co was already facing another graft and malversation case involving an approximately ₱289-million road-dike project in Oriental Mindoro, and he had previously been declared a fugitive after failing to submit to the Sandiganbayan’s jurisdiction.
France trip could open a new phase
Remulla’s planned trip signals that the government is no longer relying solely on arrest warrants issued in Manila.
The challenge now is turning Philippine court orders into action abroad.
For the Ombudsman, the argument he intends to bring to Paris is political as well as legal: Philippine officials accused of stealing public money should not be able to escape prosecution simply by moving their assets or themselves overseas.
But French authorities will ultimately operate under their own laws, judicial procedures and international obligations.
That makes the next move critical.
After months of reports placing Co in several European countries, a failed opportunity to return him from the Czech Republic, an alleged asylum bid in France and now another Sandiganbayan arrest warrant, the question is no longer whether Philippine authorities want Zaldy Co back.
The question is whether France will give them a legal path to bring him home.
WWC ONE MEDIA M.J.E