Trillanes files supplemental affidavit vs Paolo Duterte, others over 2017 drug bust

Former senator and now Caloocan City mayoral candidate Antonio "Sonny" Trillanes IV filed a supplemental affidavit against Davao City First District Representative Paolo Duterte, providing additional evidence related to a 2017 drug bust in which an estimated P6.4 billion worth of shabu was recovered.

Also named as respondents in the case are lawyer Mans Carpio, husband of Vice President Sara Duterte, and former Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon, among others.

The new evidence pertains to a drug bust in a Valenzuela City warehouse in May 2017, where at least 600 kilograms of high-grade methamphetamine entered the country through the Bureau of Customs' "express lane."

Trillanes said the supplemental affidavit would include evidence and statements from the House of Representatives quad-committee probe.

“This was the evidence used by the prosecution to convict Mark Taguba, and the affidavits of Taguba and former Customs Intelligence Officer Jimmy Guban that will validate the involvement of Pulong,” Trillanes said.

Among the supporting evidence filed by the former senator is a photocopy of the documentary evidence presented by the prosecution before the Regional Trial Court of Manila, Branch 46, in a criminal case concerning the importation of P604 billion worth of shabu, along with the judicial affidavit of Mark Taguba and the affidavit of Jimmy Guban.

“While Guban’s testimony pertains to another massive case of drug smuggling in the country, the purpose of his testimony is to establish the existence of the DAVAO GROUP and Small, Pulong, and Mans’ connection thereto,” the brief of the supplemental affidavit reads.

In a quad-committee hearing last December 2024, Mark Taguba, one of the arrested individuals in connection to the 600-kilogram Valenzuela City drug bust, linked Rep. Paolo Duterte as the leader of the alleged "Davao group."

Taguba’s statement was also supported by a statement from former Customs Intelligence Officer Jimmy Guban, who said that a "Davao group" had facilitated shipments and manipulated Bureau of Customs personnel since 2016—the year former president Rodrigo Duterte assumed office.