MANILA – Forensic financial analyst and lawyer Alexander Cabrera explained how he identified alleged undeclared assets and income involving Vice President Sara Duterte and her spouse, lawyer Manases Carpio, during the Senate impeachment trial on Friday, Oct. 9.
Responding to questions from House prosecutor Rep. Chel Diokno, Cabrera discussed Table 39 of his forensic financial report, which summarizes the alleged undeclared assets and unexplained wealth of the couple.
Cabrera said the table contains two components: undeclared assets and undeclared income.
He explained that the first component was based on a comparison of the couple’s assets with those reported in their Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALNs).
The second component involved a comparison of their income with the amounts declared in their income tax returns (ITRs).
When Diokno asked him to clarify the meaning of the term “undeclared,” Cabrera said it referred to assets that were not reflected in the couple’s SALNs as of December 31 of each reporting year.
For income, he said the term referred to amounts that were not reported in their ITRs.
The explanation outlined the methodology used in the forensic report to identify discrepancies between financial information examined by the analyst and the declarations contained in the couple’s official records.
The figures were presented as part of the prosecution’s examination of Cabrera in connection with the unexplained wealth allegations against Duterte.
The alleged discrepancies remain subject to scrutiny during the impeachment proceedings and do not, by themselves, establish that the Vice President or her spouse committed wrongdoing.
