P41-M Carpio transactions match prosecution claim — AMLC

Vice President Sara Duterte’s husband, lawyer Manases “Mans” Carpio, made six transactions totaling P41 million on a single day in August 2024, according to records presented by the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) before the Senate impeachment court Monday.

AMLC Secretariat Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura testified that all six transactions involving Carpio were recorded on 6 August 2024, consisting of two check encashments and four over-the-counter withdrawals.

“These are of different amounts po: P15 million, P8 million, P5 million, P5 million, P3 million, P5 million, Your Honor,” Buenaventura said.

The records showed that P23 million was classified as check encashments over the counter, while P18 million was recorded as over-the-counter withdrawals.

The transactions matched the P41 million figure cited by the House prosecution in alleging that Carpio “walked out of two banks with P41 million in cash in a single day.”

The AMLC records were presented as the prosecution began laying out financial transactions it intends to compare with the Duterte couple’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs) under Article II of the impeachment case.

The article accuses Duterte of amassing unexplained wealth manifestly disproportionate to her lawful income and failing to fully and truthfully disclose her and her husband’s assets, liabilities and net worth.

P10M in Duterte transactions

Buenaventura also identified three transactions involving Duterte herself in December 2024, when she was serving as vice president, totaling P10.04 million.

These included a P2.371-million over-the-counter withdrawal reported by Land Bank of the Philippines-San Pedro on Dec. 5; a P5.969-million over-the-counter withdrawal reported by BDO Unibank-Davao Rizal on Dec. 20; and a P1.7-million check encashment reported by Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co.-Davao/Ecoland, also on Dec. 20.

The two Dec. 20 transactions totaled P7.669 million. Private prosecutor Mae Divinagracia pointed out that the Dec. 20 transactions occurred only 11 days before Dec. 31, the cutoff date for assets covered by Duterte’s 2024 SALN.

Presiding Officer Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero clarified that Dec. 31 is the SALN cutoff date, not the deadline for filing the document. Duterte’s 2024 SALN declared zero cash on hand and in banks.

‘Pattern of non-disclosure’

Private prosecutor Mae Divinagracia said the records would be presented to establish a “pattern of non-disclosure” as the prosecution builds its case under Article II of the impeachment complaint.

The defense objected to the line of questioning, but Senate impeachment court Presiding Officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero overruled the objection and directed prosecutors to proceed with transactions during Duterte’s vice-presidential term.

Escudero, however, cautioned the prosecution against drawing its conclusions prematurely. “Pattern is important, but again, this is on unexplained and/or ill-gotten wealth pertaining to the period that she was or is Vice President,” he said.

He also directed the prosecution to reserve its conclusions on the alleged pattern for the appropriate stage of the proceedings, when lawyer Alexander Cabrera is presented as an expert witness.

The prosecution is seeking to establish that the financial transactions identified in AMLC records are inconsistent with Duterte’s SALN disclosures and support its allegation that she amassed unexplained wealth and failed to fully and truthfully disclose her and her husband’s assets, liabilities and net worth.