Witness claims suitcases were stored in Co's office before his legislative career

During a bail hearing at the Sandiganbayan, prosecution witness Larry Bellen recounted seeing four suitcases in the office of Co while Co was still a private businessman. Bellen, who served as an executive aide to a former Ako Bicol representative, said Co's staff were told to deposit the contents of the suitcases into a bank, but no additional information was disclosed. The testimony is part of the proceedings against RomRomualdez, who is charged with plunder over alleged kickbacks from infrastructure projects, and Co is named as a co-accused in the same case.

Bellen also mentioned that RomRomualdez allegedly encouraged Co to run as a party-list nominee, a claim Co's wife reportedly confirmed, though Bellen did not hear the request directly. Co, a co-founder of Sunwest Construction and Development Corp., later became Ako Bicol's first nominee in 2019 and chaired the House appropriations committee before resigning amid a flood-control corruption scandal. The Sandiganbayan's Sixth Division has declared Co a fugitive from justice.