Former senator Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV slammed the Duterte family, claiming that the latter’s wealth came from illegal drugs.

In an ambush interview on Wednesday, April 22, Trillanes expressed his delight after the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) confirmed his previous allegations against former President Rodrigo Duterte, Vice President Sara Duterte, and other members of their family.

“Sa ngayon, sa wakas, after 10 years ay kinumpirma ng ALMC yung aking nilalabas sa taumbayan simula pa noong 2016. ‘Yun lang, nalungkot lang ako na hindi naniwala yung mga kababayan natin noong una ko itong nilabas,” he told reporters.

“Pero ngayon, nandirito na at sana tuloy-tuloy na ito para…mabasag na yung pag papanggap ng Duterte family na sila ay mga simpleng tao. Pero dito nakita natin, na bukod sa kurakot sila, yung pera nila galing sa ilegal na droga,” he added.

The former senator appeared before the House Committee on Justice hearing on VP Duterte’s impeachment. During the said hearing, Trillanes read his affidavit containing details of the Duterte family allegedly receiving P181.6 million of manager’s checks and personal checks from an alleged drug lord identified as Samuel “Sammy” Uy.

Trillanes has long accused the Duterte family of possessing bank accounts and assets that were not properly declared. In 2017, he filed a complaint against the former president before the Office of the Ombudsman. The former senator stated that then Overall Deputy Ombudsman, Melchor Carandang, found sufficient basis to proceed with an investigation.

However, the investigation did not continue after Carandang was removed from his position during the Duterte administration.

Ten years later, Trillanes expressed hope that the investigation would finally move forward and that the Duterte family would be held accountable for the alleged unexplained wealth.