MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte owns 22 firearms, including three Class A light weapons, while her husband, lawyer Manases “Mans” Carpio, owns 29 firearms, including one Class A light weapon, a Philippine National Police (PNP) official testified before the Senate impeachment court on Monday.
Police Maj. Jerickson Sangalang, PNP-Firearms and Explosives Office (FEO) Office Records Division chief, gave the figures on the 30th day of Duterte’s impeachment trial as the House prosecution presented evidence related to allegations of unexplained wealth and inaccurate Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs).
“Vice President Sara has 22 firearms: 14 pistols, two revolvers, five rifles, three of which are Class A light weapons, and one shotgun,” Sangalang testified.
“Attorney Mans Carpio has 29 firearms: 16 pistols, two revolvers, one shotgun, 10 rifles, one of which is a Class A light weapon, and one expired firearm,” he added.
Sangalang explained that Class A light weapons include firearms with calibers of up to 7.62 mm and fully automatic functions capable of burst fire.
He confirmed to House prosecutor Bel Zamora that three of Duterte’s registered rifles are fully automatic.
The witness said law enforcement agencies are generally authorized to acquire Class A light weapons. Individuals who lawfully acquired such firearms before the relevant law took effect may continue to possess them but may not transfer them to other firearm owners.
Sangalang said a market survey placed the estimated value of Duterte’s firearms at P2.184 million, while Carpio’s firearms were estimated at about P5 million.
He clarified that the figures were market estimates and did not represent the firearms’ actual acquisition costs.
The presentation drew questions from several senator-judges about the relevance of the firearms evidence to the impeachment allegations involving unexplained wealth and SALN disclosures.
Senator-judge Erwin Tulfo questioned the need to present the firearms evidence, while Senator-judge Juan Miguel Zubiri said he was looking for more substantial evidence to support the prosecution’s case.
Senator-judge Raffy Tulfo likewise questioned the relevance of Sangalang’s testimony and called the presentation a potential waste of the court’s time.
“I wonder why Major Jerickson Sangalang still has to be presented as a witness. As far as I know, firearms can be declared as personal property. Probably all of us, all the senator-judges here, have firearms in one way or another,” Tulfo said.
“For me, sorry, this is a waste of time. We could be doing more, such as going into plenary and passing bills, rather than presenting him. Sorry, nothing personal about you. For me, this witness is irrelevant,” he added.
The defense likewise questioned the relevance of Sangalang’s testimony.
Senate Presiding Officer Francis Escudero said Sangalang’s testimony was “not as convincing” with respect to the allegation of ill-gotten wealth but allowed the prosecution to continue with the presentation.
“Let’s try to shorten the proceedings and abbreviate the proceedings,” Escudero said.
Escudero asked the defense whether it would stipulate to Sangalang’s position and to the fact that he would testify about the couple’s licensed firearms based on FEO records.
The defense agreed, effectively settling the first two points of the prosecution’s offer of evidence.
Escudero then allowed Zamora to proceed only on the remaining issues concerning the couple’s firearm licenses and the estimated value of the firearms, while directing her to keep the presentation brief.
The prosecution has been presenting evidence under Article II of the impeachment case, which alleges that Duterte accumulated unexplained wealth, failed to fully disclose assets and financial interests in her SALNs, and continued business interests while serving as vice president.
