Prosecution: First defense witness cannot prove properties declared in VP Sara’s SALN

HOUSE prosecution counsel and spokesperson Atty. Jay Tolosa raised strong objections on Monday to the testimony offered by the defense’s first witness, Davao City Assessor Engr. Jaime Adalin, arguing that the official is in no position to confirm that properties flagged as undeclared by the prosecution were actually listed in Vice President Sara Z. Duterte’s Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs).

Defense lawyer Lindon Bacquel presented Adalin, stating his testimony would prove that the property covered by Transfer Certificate of Title (TCT) No. 146‑20240110775 is indeed disclosed in Duterte’s SALNs and that the prosecution’s contrary claim is “malicious and completely false.”

Tolosa told the Senate Impeachment Court, presided over by Sen. Francis Escudero, that while the prosecution accepts Adalin’s authority and personal knowledge of tax declarations and titles, he cannot establish that the property described in the SALN matches the one covered by the TCT. “There is no way this witness could prove that the property indicated in the SALN is the same property covered by the subject TCT,” Tolosa asserted. He noted that the properties may be in the same barangay but glaring discrepancies — particularly in the declared acquisition values — make it impossible to confirm they are one and the same based solely on the assessor’s testimony.

Tolosa also rejected the defense’s characterization that the prosecution’s allegations were malicious and false, insisting that a straightforward comparison of the documents reveals clear inconsistencies. The disputed property is a Matina, Davao City lot purchased by Duterte’s husband, lawyer Manases Carpio, for ₱6 million in July 2024. Carpio also acquired a separate lot in the Island Garden City of Samal for ₱3.4 million in March 2018. According to evidence presented by the prosecution, neither of these properties appears in Duterte’s filed SALNs.