Prosecution drops Trillanes as witness in Sara Duterte impeachment trial

SONNY TRILLANES. File photo shows civil society group The Silent Majority along with former senator Antonio Trillanes file plunder and graft charges against Vice President Sara Duterte before the Office of the Ombudsman on January 21, 2026.

Jire Carreon/Rappler

No reason has been provided by the prosecution regarding its sudden change of heart

MANILA, Philippines – The prosecution withdrew its bid to present former senator Antonio Trillanes IV as its witness in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

The prosecution had intended to call Trillanes to the witness stand to testify on Duterte’s bank records.

“The prosecution has finally decided not to present former senator Sonny Trillanes. We seek the kind indulgence of the honorable impeachment court for the belated final position on this particular concern,” prosecutor Jinky Luistro told the court on Thursday, October 1.

No reason has been provided by the prosecution regarding its sudden change of heart.

Trillanes, back in 2016, leaked documents detailing years’ worth of bank transactions involving then-presidential aspirant Rodrigo Duterte and his family members.

During the impeachment proceedings at the House back in April, it was confirmed that the Dutertes’ transactions from Trillanes’ records matched with the AMLC records.

In total, the AMLC said there was a total of P6.7 billion in large and suspicious transactions that flowed through the bank accounts of Duterte and her husband Mans Carpio from 2006 to 2025. The amount is a huge disparity from the Vice President’s net worth, which peaked at over P90 million in 2025 based on her SALN.