Senate impeachment court orders release of VP Sara Duterte's bank and tax records

MANILA — The Philippine Senate ordered banks and the Anti-Money Laundering Council on Monday (July 20, 2026) to produce financial records for Vice President Sara Duterte, her husband and several linked entities, a procedural win for prosecutors seeking to prove she amassed unexplained wealth while in office.

The Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, restricted how the records may be used, saying they were meant only to establish a starting point to assess Duterte's assets, transactions and business interests during her current term, and not to introduce new allegations.

The Senate authorized the issuance of subpoenas for selected bank records, AMLC documents, and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) records involving Duterte, her husband, lawyer Manases "Mans" Carpio, the law partnership Carpio Lawyers, and 19 prosecution-identified corporate entities.

Presiding Officer Francis "Chiz" Escudero ruled that the prosecution had met the legal requirements for the issuance of subpoenas duces tecum, finding the requested records sufficiently described and directly relevant to Article II of the Articles of Impeachment.

"After a careful examination of the records requested, the court finds that the requested documents meet the requirements set forth above," Escudero ruled. "They are reasonably described, readily identifiable, prima facie relevant and material to the allegations under Article II."

Precedent and the Scope of Financial Records

In his ruling, Escudero cited the 2012 impeachment trial of former Chief Justice Renato Corona, where the Senate similarly compelled the production of bank records.

"In granting that request, the court cited Section 2 of Republic Act No. 1405, which expressly recognizes cases of impeachment as an exception to the confidentiality of bank deposits and the rights to privacy of depositors," Escudero noted.

The impeachment court rejected the defense's objection to production requests covering the years 2007 to 2021. The court clarified that these older records would not be used to prove separate impeachable offenses prior to Duterte taking office, but rather to establish her financial baseline.

"The court will only allow these records to be used to establish a factual baseline against which the respondent's assets, financial transactions, and business interests during her present term may be assessed," Escudero explained.

Spousal Accounts and Corporate Ties

The court likewise dismissed the defense's opposition to subpoenaing bank accounts maintained by Carpio, both individually and jointly with the Vice President. Escudero cited Republic Act No. 6713, which mandates public officials to disclose their spouses' assets, alongside provisions of the Family Code establishing an absolute community of property.

"Because Philippine civil law legally merges their assets, properties, and income into a single absolute community, it is a legal and mathematical impossibility to determine the respondent's true net worth or lawful income without examining the bank accounts of her husband," Escudero said, adding that the Data Privacy Act does not bar compliance with a lawful subpoena.

Similarly, the court approved requests targeting Carpio Lawyers and 19 corporations after finding sufficient links to the Vice President via General Information Sheets (GIS), Articles of Partnership, and her own Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALNs) from 2022 to 2025.

"The request, therefore, is not considered a fishing expedition, and subpoenas may issue for their peso-denominated accounts strictly in relation to Article II," Escudero ruled.

However, the court excluded foreign-currency accounts in the absence of written consent from the depositors, as required by law. It also denied requests involving JTC Group of Companies and Pikimong Pikimong Philippines Corporation, noting the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie link to either Duterte or Carpio.

AMLC Disclosures and In-Camera Review

Finally, the court ordered the AMLC to produce records involving the Vice President, her husband, their law firm, and the 19 corporations, brushing aside defense arguments regarding the Anti-Money Laundering Act’s confidentiality clauses.

"Section 8-A [of the AMLA] regulates unauthorized, arbitrary disclosures by AMLC personnel," Escudero clarified. "It does not, and constitutionally cannot, nullify the lawful subpoena powers of the Senate sitting as an impeachment court."

Escudero also dismissed the AMLC’s internal disclaimer that its reports are strictly for intelligence purposes, noting that the court itself holds the sole authority to determine the admissibility of evidence.

"Because the requested suspicious transaction reports and covered transaction reports satisfy the threshold of prima facie relevance in tracing the alleged accumulation of unexplained wealth under Article II, they shall be produced," Escudero said.

The AMLC has been ordered to submit the requested records to the Clerk of Court for Escudero's private, in-camera review on July 30, 2026, at 9:00 a.m., before the court decides whether the documents will be formally disclosed to the participating parties.

Unexplained earnings

The House of Representatives impeached Duterte on May 11 on charges of of unexplained earnings, bribery and corruption. She was also accused of threatening President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the first lady and a ⁠former House speaker.

Marcos and Duterte, scions of two of the country's most powerful political dynasties, ran on a joint ticket and won by landslide in 2022, but their alliance later collapsed, with Duterte accusing Marcos of incompetence and a lack of leadership.

"After examining the records sought, the Court finds that the requested documents meet the requirements set forth," said Senator Francis Escudero, who is presiding over the impeachment trial, which has huge implications for Duterte's political future.

The court also granted a subpoena for tax records but stopped short of ordering their release, saying disclosure must first comply with tax confidentiality rules.

A conviction, which requires the votes of at least 16 of the Senate's 24 members, could derail Duterte's plan to run for president in 2028. Duterte has denied any wrongdoing and branded the proceedings as political motivated.

Paraluman News with reporting by Nestor Corrales; Editing by David Stanway of Reuters