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Cristina Chi - Philstar.com
March 27, 2026 | 11:38am
Composite image: Alleged bagman Ramil Madriaga and Vice President Sara Duterte
The STAR, file / Philstar.com composite
MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte's legal counsel has dismissed as fabricated the latest claim by detained witness Ramil Madriaga that former Congressman Arnolfo Teves Jr. wants him killed.
Lawyer Salvador Paolo Panelo Jr., who is handling Duterte's perjury complaint against Madriaga, said in a statement Friday, March 27, that Madriaga had simply tweaked his story after his earlier claim — that Duterte personally visited him in jail — was contradicted by government officials.
InteriorSecretary Jonvic Remulla confirmed in December that Duterte did visit the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology facility at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig, but said she met with Teves, not Madriaga.
Remulla said the visit took place on October 19 and was documented on CCTV, with the jail warden present throughout.
"Since his lie was exposed, Madriaga has conveniently shifted his narrative to insinuate that VP Sara, through Teves, is behind the alleged threat to his life," Panelo said.
He called the House justice committee's acceptance of Madriaga's claims proof that the panel is "willing to entertain fabrications in pursuit of a politically motivated agenda."
What Madriaga is alleging
Madriaga's claim was raised during the House justice panel's first hearing on the impeachment case against Duterte on Wednesday, March 25.
It was cited in an affidavit by Rep. Chel Diokno (Akbayan) stating that on March 3, a detainee with a pending homicide case tried to drag Madriaga into a confined storage area inside the jail.
Madriaga said the storage room was reportedly built by Teves, and that he had received information that the former congressman wanted him dead.
The committee voted 35-1 to grant additional protection for Madriaga.
The lone objection was from Rep. Rufus Rodriguez (Cagayan de Oro), who argued the NBI had already assigned security and that Madriaga was a "polluted source" given his kidnapping charges.
Teves' lawyer Ferdinand Topacio has denied the claim.
Duterte herself earlier denied any relationship with Madriaga.
"I do not have a personal relationship with Ramil Madriaga, nor have I ever given him instructions of any kind," she said in December.
Who is Madriaga?
Madriaga is currently detained at Camp Bagong Diwa on kidnapping-for-ransom charges. He surfaced as a figure in the Duterte impeachment case after filing a sworn affidavit with the Office of the Ombudsman in November 2025, claiming he was a former aide to the vice president who personally delivered large sums of cash on her orders.
His affidavit alleged that drug dealers and Philippine offshore gaming operators funded Duterte's 2022 vice presidential campaign. Lawmakers have said his testimony could help clarify the identities behind questionable names — like "Mary Grace Piattos" and "Kokoy Villamin" — that appeared in liquidation documents for some P612 million in confidential funds under Duterte.
The House Justice Committee subpoenaed Madriaga and his affidavit on Wednesday. Duterte has filed perjury charges against him.
Teves, who is held at the same facility as Madriaga, faces multiple murder charges for his alleged role in the March 2023 assassination of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo and 10 others. He was deported from Timor-Leste in 2025.
