President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said former lawmaker Zaldy Co was stopped at the German border after entering from the Czech Republic and has since been returned to Czech authorities.
“Our coordination with Czech authorities continues. The latest information confirms that Zaldy Co was stopped at the German border after entering from the Czech Republic,” Marcos said.
“He was denied entry and returned to Czech authorities, where he remains in custody,” he added.
The development came a day after Marcos confirmed Co’s arrest in Prague following months of evasion.
Co, a former chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, is facing graft and malversation charges in connection with an alleged substandard P289-million flood control project in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro.
He has denied allegations that he received kickbacks from so-called ghost flood control projects, which surfaced during a Senate inquiry.
Co resigned from the House of Representatives in September 2025 after a government probe recommended the filing of charges against him and several public works officials.
The Sandiganbayan earlier declared Co a fugitive from justice, while an Anti-Money Laundering Council lawyer testified that he allegedly received hundreds of millions of pesos from a contractor linked to the project.
Co has also publicly accused the President and his allies of corruption—claims that have been denied by Malacañang—as legal proceedings against him continue.
