Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV has vowed to file cyber libel complaints against several individuals who accused him of receiving $2 million from fugitive lawmaker Zaldy Co to supposedly facilitate the investigation of the International Criminal Court (ICC) into the bloody anti-drug campaign of former president Rodrigo Duterte.
In an interview on “Storycon” aired on One News on Tuesday, February 24, Trillanes strongly denied the allegations, describing them as a calculated attempt to undermine the ICC proceedings as the confirmation of charges hearing begins in The Hague.
“I vehemently deny that I received $2 million or any amount from Zaldy Co for the ICC investigation or for any other purpose. We did not receive any money,” Trillanes said. He stressed that the timing of the accusation was suspicious, surfacing just as the ICC’s confirmation of charges process was getting underway.
Trillanes identified lawyer Levito Baligod, former congressman Mike Defensor, broadcaster Jay Sonza, and 18 retired soldiers as among those he plans to charge. The allegations were aired during a press briefing in San Juan.
Baligod had claimed that soldiers were ordered to convert P56 million in cash—allegedly placed in two suitcases—into dollars, amounting to $2 million, supposedly intended for ICC investigators. He further alleged that the investigators interviewed only witnesses endorsed by Trillanes and that Trillanes’ group and Co shouldered expenses for accommodations, vehicles, and logistics.
Trillanes declined to confirm operational details about ICC investigators’ activities in the Philippines in 2023, citing confidentiality and security concerns. He warned that publicly naming investigators and witnesses could constitute obstruction of justice under Article 70 of the Rome Statute.
“The fact that they doxxed and released names puts lives in danger,” he said, emphasizing that both investigators and witnesses could face serious risks.
Baligod, for his part, maintained that affidavits from soldiers would be submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman and possibly furnished to the ICC and embassies of member states. He also questioned the ICC’s jurisdiction, arguing that its residual authority over the Philippines had already lapsed.
The dispute adds another layer of tension to the ongoing international scrutiny of the Duterte administration’s anti-drug campaign, as legal battles now unfold both locally and abroad.