Witness: Sara Duterte, husband's financial records show 'symptoms of money laundering'

The financial transactions of Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband, Manases Carpio, show "symptoms of money laundering," a certified public accountant and lawyer said Monday.

Prosecution witness Alexander Cabrera, a financial analyst, testified on Day 38 of the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

Cabrera, who reviewed the bank transactions, bank records, tax records, and corporate records involving the Vice President and her husband, cited P41 million and P55 million unused manager's checks under the joint account of the Vice President and her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte.

The P41 million was eventually used as a payout to Mr. Duterte and P16 million to businessman Sammy Uy. On the same day, Carpio also made a P41 million over-the-counter withdrawal.

“Ito po yung mga telltale signs na may fraudulent reporting po na nangyayari. Actually, first time ko po nakakita nung ganun po, yung managers check po na labas-pasok po. Pero totoo naman po yung sinabi ng defense. Wala pong pirma si VP Sara doon sa managers’ check. Pero yung time deposit po na nakapangalan po sa kanya pero wala po siyang pirma, nawala po yung interest doon eh,” Cabrera said during the questioning of Senator-judge Risa Hontiveros.

(There are telltale signs of fraudulent reporting. Manager's checks coming in and out. The Vice President's signature was not on the manager's'check, but the time deposit under her name lost interest because it was made a manager's check.)

Marwin Galvez, division head for central Manila branches of Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), earlier testified that an amount in a manager’s check is not reflected on the ending balance of the account holder.

“Kahit sabihin po nating hindi nakapangalan kay VP Sara, may accountability naman po siya sa bank account because of and/or po yun. Nawala po ‘yung interest doon sa time deposit dahil ginawa pong managers’ check. So to give up interest on a large amount like that doesn't really make any business sense. Iyon po ang point namin; it is a concealment method. Sintomas po ‘yun ng money laundering,” Cabrera added.

(Even if we say that the account was not in Vice President Sara Duterte’s name, she still had accountability for it because it was an ‘and/or’ account. The time deposit also stopped earning interest when it was converted into a manager’s check. Giving up the interest on such a large amount does not make business sense. That is our point: it was a method of concealment and a symptom of money laundering.)

Cabrera said that while the Vice President did not sign the manager’s checks, the behavior of the account stays.

“I am not saying that there is money laundering. I am just saying there are symptoms. Pag ang pera po ay pumasok sa company, lumabas po the same day o lumabas po the following day, ang ibig sabihin po noon it didn't add any value to the company,” Cabrera added.

(When money enters a company and comes out the same day or the following day, it does not add any value to the company.)

GMA News Online reached out to Sara Duterte's spokesman, Paolo Panelo, for comment and will update this post once it is available.

Cabrera also flagged the P41 million withdrawal over the counter of Carpio, dated August 6, 2024.

This P41 million is broken down into P23 million from BDO Unibank Inc. (BDO) and P18 million from Philippine National Bank (PNB), as testified by Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura of the Anti-Money Laundering Council.

“P41 million in cash, kailangan niyo po siyempre ng bag po doon. Parang may hinahabol po kasi, lahat po ginawa within the hour po. Pwede rin po yung i-cheke, o i-manager’s check at i-deposit sa bank account ng iba. Pero pagka po kasi cash, ibig sabihin, ayaw po ng trail. So kung wala pong trail, eto po sa amin yung mga telltale signs din po sa forensic investigation,” Cabrera said.

(You would need a bag for there. It is like they are chasing something. Everything happened in an hour. It could have been turned into a check or manager's check, then you will deposit that to another bank account. But if it is cash, you don't want a trail. Without a trail, that's a tell-tale sign.)

“Timestamp po nung huling withdrawal 12:23 p.m., tapos 1:17 p.m. Parang may hinahabol kasi right after lunch, tuloy ‘yung transaction. Matagal din po kasi magbilang ng P41 million,” Cabrera added.

(The last withdrawal came 12:23 p.m., then again 1:17 p.m. It is as if you are chasing after something, the transaction. Because it also takes a lot of time to count P41 million.) —LDF, GMA News