Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said that the alleged joint bank accounts of the Duterte family had already been confirmed as early as 2016, based on documents he obtained from whistleblowers.

During an interview on DZRH's Damdaming Bayan on Thursday, April 23, Trillanes said the information came from whistleblowers who provided details of funds entering the accounts of Vice President Sara Duterte and former President Rodrigo Duterte.

He added that the existence of the accounts was publicly raised by him in 2016 and later acknowledged by the former president.

“Ito po ay ibinigay sa atin nung mga whistleblowers back in 2016. Una ko pong inilabas ‘yan doon tapos doon pa lang nakumpirma na yan. At inamin na po ‘yan mismo ni Duterte ‘yung accounts na iyan,” Trillanes said.

He noted, however, that while the accounts were acknowledged, the amount of money involved was not disclosed.

According to Trillanes, their own assessment placed the funds in the joint account of VP Sara Duterte and her father, Rodrigo Duterte, at around ₱2.4 billion. Which the figure was confirmed by the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) during a recent House Committee on Justice hearing on Wednesday, April 22.

“Base doon sa pagsusuma namin, 2.4 billion ang pera ni Sara Duterte at ni Digong doon sa joint account nila, at ito po ay kinumpirma kahapon ng AMLC,” he added.

In addition, Trillanes presented what he described as manager’s checks allegedly issued to members of the Duterte family, including Rodrigo Duterte, Vice President Sara Duterte, Davao City Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte, Davao City Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte, Honeylet Avanceña, and Veronica “Kitty” Duterte.

He said the total value of these checks reached ₱181 million and were allegedly sourced from an individual he identified as a drug lord named Sammy Uy, which he also revealed during the House hearing.

Trillanes also claimed that the AMLC confirmed accounts linked to Sara Duterte, citing three transactions allegedly showing she received ₱22 million between 2011 and 2013 while serving as mayor of Davao City.

“Ito hindi nila maikaila kasi galing sa account ni Sammy Uy, binigay sa kanila ‘yung cheque nasa pangalan po nila individual. Tapos kinumpirma din po ng AMLC, ‘yung kay Sara Duterte kasi ‘yung kay Sara Duterte lang yung dala nilang mga dokumento. Kinumpirma nila ‘yung tatlong transaction, nakakuha si Sara Duterte ng P22 million noong 2011-2013 noong siya ay mayor ng Davao City, galing ito sa drug lord,” he said.

During the same House hearing, Trillanes said the AMLC confirmed the ₱2.4 billion in deposits to the alleged joint account, as well as the existence of manager’s checks deposited under other family members, which he claimed originated from Uy.

Trillanes dismissed claims that his allegations were hearsay, asserting that the evidence had already been established. He also raised questions about the alleged pattern of payments, claiming that funds were deposited every April and October, which he suggested coincided with regular “dividends” amounting to ₱40 million to ₱50 million every six months.

He questioned why such large sums would be distributed regularly and pointed out that, according to him, there were no declared businesses that could generate such amounts.

Trillanes further alleged that Uy was linked to other individuals and claimed that these figures were connected to illegal drug operations in Davao City. He cited previous statements from a former police officer, and a self-confessed Davao death squad (DDS) hitman, Arturo "Arthur" Lascañas, who had identified certain individuals as partners in alleged illegal activities.

"[Si] Sammy Uy local sa Davao, kasi 'yun po ang sabi ni Lascañas, partner itong mga ito. Charlie Tan, Michael Yang, Sammy Uy. Sila ‘yung pinoproteksyunan nila tapos yung sinasabi nilang factory doon sa Davao City yun pala ay shabu laboratory na sila yung nagmamay-ari. Ngayong wala na si Duterte, ayun, naisyuhan na ng warrant, wala na," the former senator emphasized.

“Alam ko naman na totoo po ito kasi hindi ko naman ito inimbento. Hindi naman ako maglalakas ng loob na ilabas ito noong kasagsagan noong kapangyarihan ni Duterte kung gawa-gawa ko lamang po iyan,” Trillanes said.

Trillanes faced the House of Representatives on Wednesday, where he appeared as a witness in the impeachment proceedings against the Vice President.