MANILA—Vice President Sara Duterte and her husband, lawyer Manases “Mans” Carpio, have 51 firearms registered under their names, including four Class A light weapons capable of fully automatic fire, according to Philippine National Police (PNP) records presented at Duterte’s impeachment trial Monday.

Police Maj. Joe Rickson Sangalang, chief of the Records Division of the PNP Firearms and Explosives Office (FEO), testified that Duterte has 22 registered firearms while Carpio has 29.

House prosecutor San Juan City Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora presented the records as part of the prosecution’s evidence under Article II of the Articles of Impeachment, which concerns Duterte’s alleged unexplained wealth.

“Si Vice President Sara po ay merong 22 firearms. Meron po siyang 14 na pistols, two revolvers, five rifles, of which tatlo po doon ay Class A light weapons, and isa pang shotgun (Vice President Sara has 22 firearms. She has 14 pistols, two revolvers, five rifles, of which three are Class A light weapons, and one shotgun),” Sangalang said.

Carpio’s 29 firearms consist of 16 pistols, two revolvers, one shotgun and 10 rifles, including one Class A light weapon. One firearm registered to him has an expired registration.

Sangalang said both Duterte and Carpio hold Type 5 licenses to own and possess firearms, allowing certified gun collectors to register more than 15 firearms.

Zamora also asked Sangalang about the three Class A light weapons registered to Duterte. The PNP official confirmed that all three have fully automatic functions.

“Ibig sabihin po nito, ’pag kinalabit po natin iyong gatilyo, sunud-sunod na po iyong puputok (This means that when you pull the trigger, it will fire continuously),” he said.

The FEO records placed the combined current market value of the couple’s firearms at PHP7,220,370. Duterte’s firearms were valued at PHP2,184,550, while Carpio’s were valued at PHP5,035,820.

The valuation, however, came under scrutiny during the proceedings after the defense pointed out that the figures reflected current market prices and not necessarily the amounts paid by Duterte and Carpio when they acquired the firearms.

Presiding Officer Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero also questioned the relevance and evidentiary weight of the valuation to the unexplained wealth allegation. He directed the prosecution to shorten its presentation after senator-judges raised similar concerns.

Sangalang acknowledged that he had no personal knowledge of how much the couple actually paid for the firearms.

Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian also pointed out that the amounts cited by the witness were based on current market prices, even though some of the firearms may have been acquired years earlier and could have depreciated.

“But ang ating pinag-uusapan dito, yung dapat i-declare sa SALN (Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth). So anong klaseng mga baril ang nag-appreciate (But what we are discussing here is what should be declared in the SALN. So, what kinds of firearms appreciate in value?)” Gatchalian asked.

Sangalang said commonly available firearms, including Armscor and Glock models, generally lose value when resold. Discontinued or antique firearms, however, could appreciate in value.

He said the PNP did not conduct a survey of second-hand firearm prices for the presentation.

“Wala po, Your Honor. Dahil ang ginamit lang po namin is yung current market price po (None, Your Honor. We only used the current market price),” Sangalang said.

Gatchalian also noted that the PNP records did not indicate the manufacturing year of each firearm, which could help establish its age and potential depreciation.

Sangalang explained that the certification presented to the impeachment court was system-generated and that the PNP firearms registry does not maintain records of production years.

“Model, kind, and caliber lang po (Only the model, kind and caliber),” he said.

Sangalang agreed that the absence of manufacturing dates made it difficult to establish the actual present value of the firearms.

He also mentioned a Winchester firearm in the records as a possible exception, saying an online search indicated it could be an older model. He clarified that he was uncertain about its age and had not personally inspected the firearm.

The defense later waived cross-examination after Escudero established that the PHP7.2-million figure came from the FEO’s market survey and did not necessarily reflect the couple’s actual acquisition costs.

The House prosecution presented the firearms records as part of its examination of Duterte’s assets and financial interests in connection with the unexplained wealth allegation.(PNA)