Former members of the Philippine Marines individually claimed they have delivered suitcases of money to former President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Senators Vicente “Tito” Sotto III and Erwin Tulfo, and Representatives Leila de Lima and France Castro, and many others, during the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing.

The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing was presided by its chairman Senator Pia Cayetano.

One of the ex- marine Johnny Buduan said that in 2022, they delivered five suitcases to Ilocos Norte.

Buduan said he and his companions loaded the suitcases into a bulletproof Lexus, which was accompanied by a black bulletproof Toyota Hilux.

“Ikinarga po namin sa Lexus na bulletproof at saka bina-backupan po namin ng Hilux na bulletproof din,” he said.

Asked who the shipment was intended for, Buduan replied that he only heard it was for President Marcos.

“Ang narinig ko po noon ay para kay President Marcos, sir,” he said.

Buduan clarified that he and his group brought the suitcases to “Delta Gate,” while individuals identified as Sgt. Belnard Tube and “Boss Zaldy” (Zaldy Co) allegedly proceeded with the delivery to Ilocos Norte.

Belnard Tube said that he later traveled to Paoay, Ilocos Norte, but he could not provide the exact address of the property where they allegedly went because they arrived at night.

Tube described the location as a house near a body of water and said he saw photographs of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and members of the Marcos family inside the residence.

“Letter U na bahay,” Tube said, adding that family photographs and a telephone bearing the names of the Marcos family members were visible in the house.

When Senator Imee Marcos asked whether he saw members of the Marcos family during the visit, Tube claimed that Representative Sandro Marcos arrived first, followed by President Marcos, and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos.

“Noong dumating po kami, sila-sila lang po. Nauna po si Cong. Sandro, then next po si President, then si First Lady,” he testified.

Tube further claimed that the group stayed overnight and returned to Manila the following morning.

Malacañang, in return, challenged the ex-Marines to present evidence for their allegations.

“Pakita muna nila ‘yung ebidensya. Madali kasing magturo, lalo na kung ang balak mo lang naman talaga ay mang-giba at magsilbing isang obstructionist or destabilizer,” Palace Press Officer Usec. Claire Castro said in a press briefing on Thursday.

“So, dapat patunayan nila. Bigyan nila tayo ng dokumento at hindi ‘yung salita lamang,” she added.

(So, they should prove it. They should present documents as evidence instead of merely talking.)

Meanwhile, Benny Bulontante claimed he was part of an advance team tasked to proceed to a building in Baclaran allegedly associated with Sotto before the arrival of Co and his companions.

“Nauna kami sa area kasi in-advise-an kami ng team leader namin na mag-proceed na sa building ni Tito Sotto sa Baclaran,” Bulontante told senators.

According to Bulontante, five large suitcases were brought to the location sometime in 2024 before the election campaign period.

He alleged that upon Co’s arrival, the suitcases were transported through a basement area and loaded into an elevator together with several individuals accompanying Co.

Asked about the contents of the luggage, Bulontante claimed the suitcases contained cash.

“Pera po,” he said.

Bulontante said the five suitcases were all large-sized.

Sought for comment, Sotto said he will not dignify the accusation as he was not a senator from 2022 to 2025. He added that the person who allegedly received the supposed suitcases died in 2015.

He also called the hearing “a bogus investigation in aid of destabilisation.”

During the hearing, Senator Alan Peter Cayetano also referred to testimony mentioning Tulfo.

Bernard Gumban claimed he personally participated in two deliveries allegedly intended for Tulfo.

“Nakapag-deliver po ako kay Senator Erwin Tulfo ng dalawang beses,” he said.

According to Gumban, the first delivery involved two suitcases, one small and one medium-sized, while the second involved six suitcases of varying sizes.

He claimed the deliveries were made to a residence in Greenhills.

When asked how he knew the house belonged to Tulfo, Gumban said he asked an individual identified as Mark Tecsay.

“Sabi ko, ‘Boss Mark, kaninong bahay ito?’ Sabi niya, ‘Kay Senator Erwin,’” Gumban recounted.

Tulfo’s camp said they will issue a statement later.

Another witness claimed Castro frequently met with Co both at his congressional office and at a townhouse.

“Lagi kaming nagmi-meeting nila Boss Zaldy Co sa opisina niya sa Congress saka sa townhouse,” the witness said.

The witness alleged that after the meetings, Castro and others would leave carrying paper bags.

The same witness claimed that Kabataan Party-list Representative Raoul Manuel and Gabriela Party-list Representative Arlene Brosas were also present during some of the meetings.

Regarding De Lima, the witness alleged that she regularly attended meetings with Co at a townhouse and would also leave carrying items after the meetings.

“Si Leila de Lima, lagi po ‘yan sa townhouse. Ka-meeting po sila, Boss. Tapos pagkatapos po niyan may dala-dala na rin po,” the witness said.

The witness added that some of the meetings allegedly occurred during the period of the House Quad Committee hearings.

De Lima earlier denied the accusations and even filed a complaint against the 18 personalities and their lawyer, Atty. Levito Baligod.

Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, meanwhile, said that the allegations were significant.

“Mabigat sa atin ‘to, dahil pinaniwalaan natin ‘yung Blue Ribbon Committee na pinamunuan ni Sen. Lacson, but everyone knows mag-partner talaga ‘yan, si Sen. Tito Sotto at Sen. Lacson,” Cayetano noted.