Hontiveros: Ukrainian firm that sent funds to CALE88 possibly linked to money laundering

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Senator-judge Risa Hontiveros on Friday claimed that a Ukrainian company that remitted funds to Cale88 Foods Corporation, one of the listed business interests of Vice President Sara Duterte’s husband, Manases Carpio, was possibly involved in money laundering.

Hontiveros raised this during her interjection on Day 37 of the trial, where Article 2 of the impeachment case is being tackled, accusing the Vice President of amassing unexplained wealth.

The senator-judge said that her office reviewed the other foreign-based companies that sent funds to Cale88, aside from those based in China.

“Lumalabas na at least isa doon, ay posibleng sangkot sa money laundering activities. Dito po sa country, Ukraine, the Cale88 list of foreign transactions identifies a Ukrainian remitter by the name of Arkmen LLC using registration number 41423974. The address stated in the list is Zoriana 30A, Tsybuliv, Ukraine,” Hontiveros said.

(It appears that at least one of them is possibly involved in money laundering activities. The Cale88 listed foreign transactions from Ukraine, identifying a Ukrainian remitter by the name of Arkmen LLC using registration number 41423974. The address stated in the list is Zoriana 30A, Tsybuliv, Ukraine.)

“At itong registration number, 41423974, at ‘yung address Zoriana 30A, ay nagko-correspond sa isang kumpanya involved sa isang criminal proceeding na binuksan po nung May 19, 2025 para sa fraud and money laundering kaugnay ng 1.225 million euros,” she added.

(The registration number and the address Zoriana 30A correspond to a company involved in a criminal proceeding initiated on May 19, 2025, for fraud and money laundering involving 1.225 million euros.)

Hontiveros said that in March 2026, the Pecherskyi District Court of Kyiv ordered a search of Arkmen’s premises, and in April 2026, it ordered a freeze on the suspect's 100% shareholding in Arkmen.

“At ‘yung huling inward remittance po nitong Arkmen LLC sa Cale88 ay noong May 30, 2025 na pagkatapos na po ng petsa ng pagsisimula ng criminal proceedings,” she said.

(The last inward remittance from Arkmen LLC to Cale88 was on May 30, 2025—which was shortly after the criminal proceedings began.)

The senator-judge thus asked prosecution witness, Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Office of the Commissioner chief of staff Atty. Anne Loraine Garcia-Marquez, if there were legitimate transactions behind the international remittances between Arkmen LLC and Cale88, Carpio’s firm should have reported them as sales and subjected them to tax.

Garcia-Marquez answered, “Kung ito po ay sales po, then it should have been reported po in the annual Income Tax Return po.”

(If these are sales, then it should have been reported in the annual Income Tax Return.)

To recall, Hontiveros previously claimed that some of the Chinese firms that funded Cale88 were state-owned enterprises that may be “advancing the interests of the Chinese Communist Party.” —AOL, GMA News