Trillanes posts bail for conspiracy to commit sedition case
MANILA, Philippines (Update 1, 12:25 p.m.) — Former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV on Tuesday morning arrived in Manila to post bail on the Department of Justice's conspiracy to commit sedition case against him, the latest legal suit he faces in recent years.
Trillanes arrived in Manila early Tuesday morning from his engagements outside the country. The STAR reported that the former senator posted bail before noon. His lawyer, Renaldo Robles, is also seen flanking Trillanes.
WATCH: Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV posts bail for the conspiracy to commit sedition case filed against him at the Quezon City Metropolitan Trial Court on Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/CMpxKDDclf
— The Philippine Star (@PhilippineStar) February 18, 2020
The court issued a warrant of arrest against Trillanes and ten others for conspiracy to commit sedition over the “Ang Totoong Narcolist” video series that alleged drug links to President Rodrigo Duterte, his family and allies.
The former senator was out of the country last week when news of the issuance of warrants broke out. He, however, said Friday: “I will face this case just as I have faced all the other harassment cases Duterte's minions have filed against me."
Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Olivia Laroza-Torrevillas said in the resolution that the prosecution panel considered “the series of acts which clearly manifested that there is indeed... a grand conspiracy.”
These are the production of “Bikoy” videos, uploading, press conferences of Peter Joemel Advincula, and former cop Eduardo Acierto—also charged in the case—linking Duterte and his family to illegal drug syndicates.
Trillanes said he met Advincula, also charged in the case, in 2018 but the latter did not pass the vetting process as he found the allegations as not credible.
State prosecutors, however, said that Trillanes’ denial “does not merit any consideration, especially at the stage of preliminary investigation, in the light of evidence and circumstances proving that he had a hand in the conspiracy to oust the Duterte administration.”
Arraignment is set on March 17.
A string of legal suits
The conspiracy to commit sedition is the latest in the string of legal suits the government filed against the former lawmaker in recent years.
Trillanes, a known critic of Duterte, is facing a revived rebellion case before a Makati court, over his participation in the 2007 Manila Peninsula siege. He was arrested on Sept. 25, 2018 and he posted bail on the same day.
Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 150 issued a warrant against him on Sept. 25, 2018 after it found “factual and legal basis” on Duterte’s Proclamation 572 which declared Trillanes’ amnesty as “void from the beginning.”
The former senator is also facing an inciting to sedition case before the Pasay Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 45 for his remarks on Duterte’s hidden wealth. He was also charged with the same offense for his remarks against the president over the revocation of his amnesty.
The senator is also facing a libel charge filed by former Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and Manases Carpio, the president's son and son-in-law, respectively, before a Davao court.
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