Metro Manila, Philippines – The husband of Vice President Sara Duterte has filed criminal complaints against members of the House justice committee and officials from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) for disclosing their bank records at the impeachment hearing.
On Monday, April 27, Carpio filed raps with the Quezon City prosecutor’s office against Bangko Sentra ng Pilipinas (BSP) governor and AMLC chairman Eli Remolona Jr., AMLC executive director Ronel Buenaventura, justice panel chairperson Jinky Luistro, Akbayan representatives Chel Diokno and Perci Cendaña, and Mamamayang Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima.
The petitioner said the complaint alleges violation of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, bank secrecy laws, and the Data Privacy Act.
“It is indisputable that the AMLC reports involving my and my wife VP Sara’s alleged banking transactions are sensitive information that cannot be disclosed to anyone. Yet, respondents openly divulged these purported banking transaction reports in a public hearing before the HCOJ,” Carpio said in his petition.
The complainant said he sent a “cautionary letter” to the AMLC about the disclosure of their bank records on April 16 before the committee hearing on April 22.
In a chance interview, Peter Danao, Carpio’s lawyer, said his client filed the complaint against lawmakers who introduced and seconded motions to summon the bank records.
He noted that the AMLC did not provide Carpio with a copy of the report.
The agency disclosed in the April 22 impeachment hearing that Duterte and Carpio registered ₱6.77 billion in covered and suspicious transactions from 2006 to 2025. Lawmakers flagged the amount due to a disparity with Duterte’s 2024 net worth, which stands at ₱88.5 million.
“Ang AMLC ay ginawa para sa money laundering, para siya mag-imbestiga ng mga money laundering acts. Hindi pwede gawin kung wala ka naman money laundering na fina-file tapos magsisiwalat ka ng impormasyon. Iyon ang ayaw ng batas,” Danao said.
[Translation: The AMLC was created to deal with money laundering—to investigate acts of money laundering. It cannot act if there is no money laundering case being filed, and then just disclose information. That is what the law prohibits.]
He also denied the figures disclosed in the AMLC report.
“Sa pag-uusap namin ni Atty. Carpio, [In my conversation with Atty. Carpio] he vehemently denies having ₱6 billion…or ₱3 billion. He vehemently denies that,” Danao said.
‘In accordance with law’
In a statement, lawmakers rejected the arguments from Carpio’s camp, saying impeachment raps are exempted from the prohibitions in the Anti-Money Laundering Act and the Bank Secrecy Law.
“Nabisto kasi. Ganoon naman ang modus ng mga Duterte, kapag nahuli, takbo sa korte. Pero advice ko sa kampo ni VP Sara, imbes na mag-aksaya sila ng papel at oras sa pagsasampa ng mga kaso humarap na lang si VP Sara sa April 29 sa Committee on Justice hearing. Doon siya magpaliwanag,” Cendaña said.
[Translation: It was exposed, that’s why. That’s the usual modus of the Dutertes—when they get caught, they run to the courts. But my advice to VP Sara’s camp is, instead of wasting paper and time filing cases, VP Sara should just face the Committee on Justice hearing on April 29 and explain herself there.]
“We also have the Republic Act (RA) No. 9160 or the Anti-Money Laundering Act which embodies the state’s more recent and specific policy that financial secrecy cannot be used to conceal unlawful activity,” De Lima said.
Carpio’s camp argued that respondents violated a provision in Republic Act 11521 signed in 2021, which amended the original 2001 law. A section in the amended law states that the “AMLC and its secretariat shall securely protect information received or processed and shall not reveal, in any manner, any information known to them by reason of their office.”
Meanwhile, the BSP said Remolona vowed to respond to the complaint at the proper forum.
“We emphasize that the BSP and the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) continue to perform their mandates in accordance with law, guided by independence, professionalism, and due process,” it said.
NewsWatch Plus has reached out to Luistro and Diokno for comment.
