NBI: Sara Duterte, ally skipped probe into alleged kill plot against VP, family

Vice President Sara Duterte and one of her allies, identified as Princess Maui, failed to appear before the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to substantiate their claims of an alleged plot to kill the Vice President and her family, NBI Senior Agent Mark Calilung said.

Calilung made the disclosure while testifying for the prosecution during Duterte's impeachment trial, particularly on Article IV of the Articles of Impeachment.

The article accuses the Vice President of culpable violation of the Constitution, high crimes, and betrayal of public trust for allegedly threatening President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his family with assassination and for allegedly inciting sedition.

"We tried to investigate the supposed threats against them, Your Honor. It was included in our letter to the Vice President. That is why we invited her to our office so we could investigate the alleged threats to her life," Calilung said.

He made the statement in response to a question from senator-judge Alan Peter Cayetano on whether Princess Maui complied with the NBI's invitation to provide details about the alleged assassination plot against the Duterte family, purportedly known as "Oplan Romanov."

"Yes, we invited the Vice President and Princess Maui to come to the NBI. They did not appear, Your Honor," Calilung added.

House impeachment adviser and former Surigao del Norte Representative Ace Barbers said the Duterte camp could not expect the NBI to act on allegations that Duterte and her allies themselves failed to substantiate before investigators.

"They did not cooperate, so where is the NBI supposed to start?" Barbers said.

Defense counsel Mark Vinluan, however, maintained that Oplan Romanov is real, arguing that it was the reason Duterte made the statements during a November 2024 press conference in which she said she had instructed someone to kill President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez if she herself were assassinated.

"When VP Sara uttered those words, she was not responding as Sara Duterte the Vice President, but as Sara Duterte the wife, mother, daughter, and sister who only sought to protect her own life and the lives of her family members," Vinluan said.

"Operation Romanov is in place, and the threat against their lives is real. VP Sara became the target of unauthorized intelligence and surveillance operations by government operatives that exposed her family to high-level risks and security threats, causing intense trauma and uncontrollable fear," he added.

Duterte is on trial before the Senate impeachment court over allegations of culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, and other impeachable offenses.

At the start of the trial, the House prosecution panel presented Calilung as its first witness in support of the article accusing Duterte of threatening President Marcos, the First Lady, and Romualdez.

During the November 2024 press conference, Duterte said:

"Huwag kang mag-alala, Ma'am sa security ko, kasi may kinausap na ako na tao. Sabi ko sa kanya, kapag pinatay ako, patayin mo si BBM, si Liza Araneta, at si Martin Romualdez."

(Don't worry about my security because I have already spoken to someone. I told that person that if I am killed, kill BBM, Liza Araneta, and Martin Romualdez.)

She continued: "No joke, no joke. Nagbilin na ako, Ma'am. 'Pag mamatay ako, sabi ko, huwag ka tumigil ha, hanggang hindi mo mapatay sila. And then he said yes."

(No joke. I already gave instructions that if I die, don't stop until you have killed them.) — MCG, GMA News