Vice President Sara Duterte’s legal team may present a witness to detail an alleged plot against the Vice President and her family, dubbed “Operation Romanov,” as her Senate impeachment trial continued on Monday.
The strategy emerged after Senator Raffy Tulfo pressed defense counsel Atty. Mark Vinluan regarding his previous mentions of the covert operation.
Tulfo questioned if the defense was referencing the same plot brought to light by an online content creator during a past media briefing with Duterte.
“This operation Romanov that you mentioned, are you referring to the Operation Romanov mentioned by the vlogger Princess Maui during the online press conference of VP Sara?” Tulfo asked.
Vinluan confirmed the connection, prompting Tulfo to point out that the vlogger’s name was missing from the defense’s official witness list.
The defense lawyer explained that a final decision on her appearance rests on how the trial unfolds and how the prosecution presents its case.
“It will depend on what has been—what will be established by the prosecution, the defense reserve, its right to call or not call any witness, depending on the course of the trial,” Vinluan said.
Regardless of that decision, Vinluan assured the court that the defense panel intends to introduce other witnesses to substantiate the existence of the alleged plot.
“That will be part of our evidence in chief,” he added.
The alleged plot was first publicized during a 2024 press conference where Duterte claimed there was an assassination threat against her involving President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
These public statements form the core of Article IV of the Articles of Impeachment, which accuses the Vice President of culpable violation of the Constitution, high crimes, and betrayal of public trust for allegedly inciting sedition and threatening the lives of the nation’s top officials.