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Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV holds a press conference at Club Filipino in San Juan City on Friday, October 2, 2026, where he presents his findings on the alleged ill-gotten wealth of Vice President Sara Duterte, which he says were supposed to form part of his testimony in her impeachment trial. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News
MANILA — The spokesperson of Vice President Sara Duterte, Paolo Panelo, disputed claims that the testimony of Anti Money Laundering Council chief Ronel Buenaventura "confirmed" the allegations of former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV.
Trillanes 'vindicated' by AMLC documents on VP Duterte financial transactions: prosecution
Trillanes earlier divulged that Duterte had received money from China funneled through their company Cale88.
"If anything was confirmed, it is only that Trillanes obtained his information illegally in violation of the Anti-Money Laundering Act and Bank Secrecy Laws," Panelo said in a statement.
"The AMLC Executive Director merely testified on covered and suspicious transactions reports filed by banks. He did not, because he could not, confirm, and the prosecution still has to prove, that any money attributed to the Vice President was illegally sourced, was hidden, or was even hers to begin with," he added.
Panelo slammed Trillanes, who was initially supposed to be a witness in the impeachment trial.
"Trillanes is no truth-teller. He is a professional anti-Duterte propagandist who tried to fill the gaps in the prosecution’s evidence with hearsay, rumors, malicious speculation, and outright lies," Panelo said.
While not part of the prosecution's evidence, several prosecutors said that these claims might surface with the testimonies of the witnesses as the trial tackles the allegedly unexplained wealth of the Vice President.
"Senator-Judge [Ping] Lacson himself has confirmed that his accusations have no probative value. His allegations are better suited for the parlor, not the court," Panelo ended.
When asked for a statement, Trillanes said he has "no comment" on the issue.