FACT CHECK: ICC personnel did not receive P60-M bribe — Trillanes

Claim: Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV and former House speaker Martin Romualdez colluded with the International Criminal Court personnel and bribed them with one suitcase full of cash. 

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The video bearing the claim was posted on June 6, 2026, and has since garnered over 81,300 views, 7,200 reactions, 290 comments, and 1,200 shares.

It includes a text overlay that reads: “Trillanes at Martin Romualdez nakisabwatan sa ICC? Miyembro ng ICC na dumating sa bansa binigyan ng isang maletang puno ng pera.” (Trillanes and Martin Romualdez colluded with the ICC? ICC members who arrived in the Philippines were given a suitcase full of cash).

The video was uploaded by the Facebook page, “Duterte Supporters,” which has over 876,000 followers and consistently posts pro-Duterte content.

The facts: The claims stemmed from the June 4 contested blue ribbon committee hearing of the Cayetano-led bloc, where 18 “ex-marines” alleged that ICC personnel accepted bribes in collusion with Trillanes and Romualdez (READ: Cayetanos’ contested Senate hearing gives ‘ex-Marines’ platform to attack enemies). 

The claims mirror the allegations previously included in an affidavit that circulated on Day 2, February 27, 2026, of Duterte’s pre-trial proceedings at the ICC (WATCH: Why it’s inaccurate to call Zaldy Co’s former security aides ‘ex-Marines’). 

ICC Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang denied the allegations, emphasizing that the investigation in the Philippines was not funded by any local politicians.

“I think that you shouldn’t believe any of those kinds of things. I think that, you know, the Office of the Prosecution functions through the resources allocated to it by the member state,” he told Rappler during a one-on-one interview. “Those are the only resources we use, either through the regular budget or the extra budgetary fund, which is also properly documented.”

Niang added that the allegations were made in an attempt to intimidate them.

Trillanes had also earlier denied the allegations, clarifying that ICC personnel were not bribed when the purported 18 “ex-marines” first raised the claims. The former lawmaker called the accusations “pathetic lies” that “put the lives of genuine ICC witnesses at risk.”

“These people are peddling a pathetic lie. As a complainant in the ICC case since 2017, I am expected to actively communicate with them — from gathering numerous evidence to securing witnesses. Is there a crime in holding a tyrant accountable? Why would ICC prosecutors need a bribe from me? They do not operate on the transactional, corrupt mindset that these people are clearly accustomed to,” Trillanes said.

Inconsistent testimonies: Trillanes filed a cyber libel complaint against the 18 “ex-marines” on March 23, 2026, over the claims, on top of the perjury complaint he had earlier filed on March 5. He said that the “testimonies” presented are inconsistent and have been constantly evolving (READ: Raffy Tulfo punches holes in 5 claims by Zaldy Co’s 18 alleged ex-bodyguards). 

“Every time they are subjected to different interviews, their narratives evolve. They are now claiming they delivered money to my house in bags or in ‘male-maleta,’ which even contradicts their initial ‘joint’ affidavit and statements,” Trillanes said.

The lawyer of the 18 “ex-marines,” Levi Baligod, said on June 8, 2026, that two of the alleged former security aides of former House Appropriations Chair and Ako Bicol Representative Zaldy Co recanted their allegations against Senator Loren Legarda, who is currently a member of the Cayetano-led bloc.  – Reinnard Balonzo/Rappler.com 

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