Lacson: Sara wealth claims still subject to defense scrutiny

Senator-judge Panfilo “Ping” Lacson said Saturday that the prosecution’s case against Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio over alleged unexplained wealth had been presented clearly, but stressed that its financial expert’s findings must still withstand scrutiny from the defense.

Lacson praised House prosecution member Rep. Jose Manuel “Chel” Diokno for his questioning of accountant and lawyer Alexander Cabrera during Friday’s impeachment hearing, when the witness placed the alleged undeclared assets and income of Duterte and her husband, lawyer Manases Carpio, at P817.87 million from 2022 to 2025.

“Without intending to prejudge the outcome, and subject to any convincing rebuttal the defense may present during the cross-examination of prosecution expert witness Atty. Alexander B. Cabrera, Cong. Chel Diokno appears to have tied up the issues under Article II (Unexplained Wealth) with remarkable clarity, precision, and coherence,” Lacson said in a post on X.

Cabrera, the prosecution’s financial forensic analyst, arrived at the P817,874,867 estimate by combining alleged undeclared cash, personal and real properties, income not reflected in the couple’s declarations, and income linked to business interests, including Cale88 Foods Corp., Metro City Chow and Gencorp Industries.

He said his analysis drew on bank, tax, anti-money laundering and corporate records presented during the trial. He also applied the legal principle of piercing the corporate veil to examine assets and income associated with companies linked to the couple.

Cabrera testified that the couple’s bank accounts held P60.21 million in 2022, P80.7 million in 2023, P23.17 million in 2024 and P43.61 million in 2025, which he said were not reflected in Duterte’s statements of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALNs).

He also reported that deposits treated as income amounted to P174.96 million from 2022 to 2025, compared with P63.11 million declared in the couple’s tax returns.

Based on his examination, Cabrera characterized Duterte’s SALNs from 2022 to 2025 as untruthful and said the findings indicated possible violations of other laws, including the Tax Code. These were conclusions presented by the prosecution witness and have yet to be tested through the defense’s cross-examination.

Lacson said he respected Cabrera’s credentials but would not consider his testimony conclusive at this stage because the defense could challenge his findings and identify weaknesses in his analysis.

“Pag dumating ang inyong pagkakataon na i-present ang sarili ninyong expert na may analysis, titimbangin namin kung ano ang mas kapanipaniwala,” Lacson said, referring to the panel’s responsibility to determine which testimony is more credible.

The defense is expected to begin cross-examining Cabrera on Monday. Presiding officer Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero had directed the prosecution to bring the expert back for questioning, warning that his testimony could be rendered useless without the defense being given the opportunity to cross-examine him.

Rep. Terry Ridon, another member of the prosecution panel, said the prosecution would formally offer its evidence after Cabrera’s cross-examination and any subsequent redirect and recross examinations.

The proceedings form part of Article II of the impeachment complaint, which accuses Duterte of unexplained wealth. The Senate impeachment court must assess the evidence and the defense’s response before determining whether the allegations warrant conviction.