Prosecution drops Antonio Trillanes IV as witness in Sara Duterte's impeachment trial

The House prosecution panel has dropped former senator Antonio Trillanes IV from its list of witnesses in Vice President Sara Duterte's impeachment trial.

"The prosecution has finally decided not to present former senator Sonny Trillanes," lead prosecutor Rep. Gerville Luistro announced on Thursday, Oct. 1, or Day 32 of the impeachment trial.

"We seek the kind indulgence of the honorable impeachment court for the belated final position on this particular concern," she said.

The prosecution did not provide a reason for the move.

Trillanes was initially expected to serve as a witness for Article II of Duterte's impeachment complaint, which centers on her alleged unexplained wealth and inaccurate declarations in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth.

In a post on X on Sept. 28, Trillanes said he was "willing and ready to testify sa [i]mpeachment para magkaalaman na."

Two days later, Trillanes tweeted, "Marami akong ilalabas na mga bagong mabibigat na ebidensya laban kay Sara. Let the senator-judges and the people decide kung makabuluhan ang mga ito o hindi."

The prosecution's move to drop Trillanes as a witness came after senator-judge Raffy Tulfo criticized the prosecution for what he described as poor handling of some of its witnesses.

"There are times na naglalagay kayo ng mga witnesses dito na hindi naman kailangan talaga. Nagsasayang lang tayo ng oras," he said. 

Tulfo specifically questioned the timing of Trillanes' testimony, suggesting that the former senator should testify first so he could potentially confirm information that would later be presented by the Anti-Money Laundering Council.

"Much better kung mauna muna siya bago ang AMLC. Kasi 'yung mga sasabihin ni Mr. Trillanes, may kinalaman sa mga bank accounts na kanyang nakalap long time ago. So kung meron siya mga ibubulgar na mga bank accounts, mga pera, pumasok labas sa accounts na nakuha niya sa kanyang source, then after na makausap natin si Sen. Trillanes, i-confirm yun ang AMLC. So dapat mauna muna si Mr. Trillanes," he said.

Luistro said the prosecution would have only AMLC Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura as their sole witness for the trial on Friday, Oct. 2.

Duterte is facing a total of four impeachment articles alleging the misuse of confidential funds, unexplained wealth, bribery and procurement irregularities, and grave threats and high crimes.