MANILA, Philippines — In a dramatic move to establish a historic pattern of behavior, prosecutors are digging deep into the political past of the nation’s second-highest official. The court sheriff famously punched by Vice President Sara Duterte during a 2011 demolition brawl in Davao City has been officially listed by the House prosecution panel as a witness for her upcoming Senate impeachment trial.
The inclusion of the sheriff marks a strategic escalation by prosecutors to look beyond financial irregularities and demonstrate a lifelong disregard for legal institutions and public trust.
The pretrial conference entering its fifth intense day at the Senate complex has revealed an expansive, high-stakes list of individuals the prosecution intends to put on the stand. The panel has submitted a staggering 57-witness roster to the Senate Impeachment Court, creating immediate friction with the defense over the relevance and safety of the individuals listed.
The witness lineup effectively divides the prosecution’s evidentiary strategy into three aggressive prongs:
[ HOUSE PROSECUTION IMMINENT WITNESSES ]
│
┌───────────────────────────────────┼───────────────────────────────────┐
▼ ▼ ▼
[ PATTERN OF BEHAVIOR ] [ CONFIDENTIAL FUND DISBURSAL ] [ THE "GHOST" RECEIPTS ]
• **The Struck Court Sheriff:** • **DepEd Officials & Insiders:** • **“Mary Grace Piattos”:** A highly
The court officer punched on-camera • High-ranking education managers • controversial name discovered on
by Duterte during her term as • are slated to testify regarding • acknowledgment receipts used to
Davao City mayor will testify to • alleged monetary gifts, secret • clear hundreds of millions of pesos
substantiate the "betrayal of public• payments, and bypassed public • in confidential fund aid programs.
trust" charges. • procurement rules under her watch.• The PSA has already verified that
• the identity does not legally exist.
Duterte’s legal team has responded to the prosecution’s massive witness rollout with tactical indifference. Speaking to reporters during an ambush interview on Thursday afternoon, defense spokesperson Michael Poa downplayed the shock value of the witness choices, including the fictitious “Mary Grace Piattos” and the Davao court sheriff.
[ THE DEFENSE LEGAL STANCE ] │ ▼[ Prerogative Rule ]──► Poa clarified that selecting and calling witnesses is entirely the prosecution's call. *“On our part, that is the prosecution's prerogative as to whom they will present as witnesses,”* he stated. │ ▼[ Cross-Examination]──► The defense camp stated they are entirely unfazed by the roster. Poa confirmed that the defense legal bench is fully prepared to cross-examine every single individual placed on the stand. │ ▼[ Exclusion List ] ──► Poa confirmed that non-existent identities like "Mary Grace Piattos" were deliberately omitted from the defense's own pretrial brief, as they hold no actual defense value.
As the July 6, 2026 trial proper approaches, both legal teams are working late hours to finish marking a mountain of evidence. The Senate Impeachment Court had to expand the number of active checking teams to prevent procedural delays, as Article I alone involves over 4,000 Documents Evidencing Payments (DEPs) tied to the alleged misuse of ₱612.5 million in secret funds.
While Lead Public Prosecutor Rep. Gerville Reyes-Luistro and private prosecutor Benjamin “Jay” Tolosa Jr. expressed satisfaction that additional marking channels are speeding up the workflow, arguments continue behind closed doors. With the defense demanding the names of certain witnesses be withheld for safety and the prosecution demanding full transparency, former Senate President Franklin Drilon has publicly warned against attempts to conceal evidence—drawing parallels to the infamous “second envelope” crisis of the 2001 Erap Estrada trial and reminding lawmakers that the public will not tolerate any suppression of the truth.