Sara Duterte’s grave threats arraignment postponed anew

MANILA, Philippines — The arraignment of Vice President Sara Duterte on three counts of grave threats was postponed for the second time on Friday by the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 98.

The arraignment was initially scheduled for Sept. 11 before the court moved it to Oct. 9.

The court’s latest postponement delays the proceedings in the case stemming from Duterte’s remarks during an online press conference in November 2024, when she said she had hired a hitman to target President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez if she herself were killed.

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READ: Arraignment deferred, but VP’s attacks on her ‘threat’  target resume

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The charges were filed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in August, after receiving the complaint referred by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in February last year.

The NBI initiated an investigation into the alleged death threats Duterte uttered against Marcos, the first lady, and Romualdez during the online press conference.

The vice president has denied the allegations.

READ: Sara Duterte posts bail: ‘I don’t trust the court’

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The court issued an arrest warrant against Duterte on September 4. The vice president then posted the required bail of P120,000 for each count the following day.

Duterte’s supposed utterance of death threats is also a key part of her case in her ongoing Senate impeachment trial./dp