House prosecutors revealed on Wednesday that they intend to introduce a new witness to tackle allegations regarding Vice President Sara Duterte’s claims of hiring an assassin to target President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
The announcement came during the third day of the Senate impeachment trial, where Senator Bam Aquino questioned National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) senior agent John Mark Calilung about the depth of his investigation into the Vice President’s statements.
Aquino pressed the agent on whether the bureau investigated the actual existence of a hitman, rather than simply verifying the media footage.
“May mga nabanggit doon sa mga statements tungkol sa hitman. Sa totoo lang, iyong presensya ng hitman, mabigat iyon,” Aquino stated. “So let me ask. (Did you investigate) just the video or did you also investigate the presence of the hitman that was being mentioned in the videos of the Vice President?”
Calilung explained that his investigation was limited entirely to confirming the authenticity of the video recordings from the November 23, 2024, press conference where Duterte made the controversial remarks.
When asked if the prosecution panel would present evidence or a witness regarding the assassin, House prosecutor Amando Virgil Ligutan replied,
“As to the alleged hitman… yes.”