House prosecutors won't present Trillanes as witness in Sara Duterte trial

Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV will not be presented as a witness in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, the House prosecution panel said Thursday.

House lead prosecutor Gerville Luistro of Batangas made the manifestation on Day 32 of the impeachment trial, saying the panel's decision was final.

"The prosecution has finally decided not to present former senator Sonny Trillanes. We seek the kind indulgence of the honorable impeachment court for the belated final position on this particular concern," Luistro said.

She did not immediately cite a specific reason behind this decision.

Senator-judge Raffy Tulfo earlier said Trillanes must be presented as witness first before the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) Executive Director Ronel Buenaventura, given Trillanes’ previous allegations involving the bank accounts of the Duterte family.

Trillanes, a staunch critic of the Dutertes, already visited the impeachment court last Tuesday.

Just hours ahead of the manifestation, Luistro told reporters there was no schedule yet when Trillanes would appear as a witness in the trial.

"No definite schedule yet," Luistro said.

Senate impeachment court presiding officer Francis "Chiz" Escudero had rejected the request to issue a subpoena to Trillanes.

Meanwhile, Anti-Money Laundering Council executive director Ronel Buenaventura is expected to appear this week in the trial.

Luistro said that discussions on AMLC records could be "lengthy."

"We are expecting a lot of interjections coming from the senator judges, that is addition to the cross examination," she said. — VDV, GMA News