Duterte didn’t declare P190M cash in bank in SALNs — prosecution
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte and her spouse, Manases Carpio, had combined year-end bank balances totaling P190 million from 2022 to 2025 that were not declared in the Vice President’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs), the House prosecution panel said on Tuesday, October 6.
On Day 34 of Duterte’s impeachment trial, prosecutors presented six common offers of evidence for 13 bank witnesses, who were called to identify and authenticate the couple’s bank records.
Private prosecutor James Bryan Ibrahim Alih said the bank records showed Duterte and Carpio maintained 30 active bank accounts across eight banks, with combined year-end balances of more than P59 million in 2022, over P71 million in 2023, over P22 million in 2024, and over P35 million in 2025.
“When taken together across the years 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025, the Vice President’s and her husband, Atty. Carpio’s bank accounts have a total ending balance of more than P190 million that are not declared in her SALNs,” Alih said in making the offer of testimony.
Duterte declared she had zero cash on hand and cash in bank in her SALNs from 2022 to 2025.
“These are just figures and it will not change because of politics and repeated objections. If the numbers are correct and will match, then the respondent has nothing to be afraid of. We should present everything and let the documents and pieces of evidence speak for themselves,” said Alih.
The bank records are being presented as part of the prosecution’s evidence on Duterte’s alleged unexplained wealth.
The first witness to testify was LandBank San Pedro-Davao branch head Eunice Sumatra, who submitted the movement of payroll and withdrawal slips of Duterte.
The court took a recess following her testimony. During the break, presiding officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero was seen conferring with the defense and prosecution panels.
Escudero then issued a ruling stating that the direct submission of bank and insurance records “establishes their existence and provenance without the need for further testimony on the matter.”
He also said that electronic printouts of the submitted documents will be “legally treated as original documents provided they accurately reflect the data.”
“However, the court clarified that this procedural authentication does not automatically guarantee the truth or accuracy of every entry,” Escudero said.
“The defense retains the right to challenge the admission of these records or demand a custodian’s testimony if they can demonstrate specific evidence of fraud, alteration, or irregularity,” he added. – Rappler.com
