AMLC witness: Romualdez’s bank transactions hit P4.5 billion during speakership

MANILA — A financial investigator of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) told the Sandiganbayan that bank transactions linked to suspended Leyte First District Rep. Martin Romualdez reached about P4.509 billion when he was House speaker from June 2022 to September 2025.

Atty. Jan Mark Busa, a bank officer at the AMLC, made the testimony in the plunder case against Romualdez over alleged P7.4-billion ill-gotten wealth from government infrastructure projects. 

Busa said the transactions during Romualdez’s term as Speaker were the second major peak in the AMLC’s six time-bucket summary. The first was about P3.98 billion from April 2003 to June 2007. 

He said the financial transactions were significantly lower after Romualdez’s term as speaker. 

“I observed that his transaction post-speakership drastically went down,” Busa said. 

He said this was based on 1,951 transaction reports covering April 2003 to October 2025. For the material period, 35 accounts appeared in AMLC records.

State investigators previously alleged that Romualdez and former Ako Bicol Rep. Zaldy Co conspired to amass some P57 billion in ill-gotten wealth through kickbacks from infrastructure projects.

However, Busa said there was a “huge disparity” between the P57 billion in cash deliveries alleged for 2022 to 2025 and the P560.5 million in inflows the AMLC identified in Romualdez’s accounts over the same period.

During cross examination by the defense, he said they did not have a finding that Romualdez’s P560-million declared inflows during his speakership came from unlawful activities or were linked to flood control projects.

“You were not able to determine if any of these inflows worth P560 million during the speakership of Romualdez came from an unlawful activity… no finding that these are flood control projects?” asked Romualdez’s lawyer Rashel Pomoy, to which Busa answered in the affirmative.

Busa also confirmed that he did not find any inflows to Romualdez that could be traced to contractors, the DPWH, or Co.

When asked if he found that Romualdez’s transactions were beyond his financial capacity, Busa said: “We do not have findings for that but we also do not have a finding that these transactions are within his means.”

Under clarificatory questioning by the prosecution, Busa said the number of inflows was based on the AMLC database, which contains financial records submitted by Romualdez himself. 

The prosecution also stressed that the AMLC’s findings were based on recorded bank transactions, while the alleged kickbacks involved physical cash deliveries, which may not have been reflected in Romualdez’s bank records.

Busa testified that the purchase of 30 Tamarind in Forbes Park, Makati City, by Golden Pheasants, Romualdez’s alleged dummy company, was made through three manager’s checks.

Bank records showed that Samchan purchased the first manager’s check worth P294.23 million, according to AMLC. The other two manager’s checks, worth a combined P1.1 billion, were reportedly purchased by a law firm on March 29, 2023. 

The funds used for its purchase were traced to 21 check deposits worth P1.72 billion made between March 10 and 27, 2023, from an account reportedly belonging to Samchan, and others from NC Foreign Currency, a money service business whose declared contact person is Samchan’s Felicito Guevarra, he said.

Busa said the transactions would not appear suspicious on their own and that bank documents could not show if Samchan bought its check for other parties.

“Based on the documents submitted by the bank, it cannot be ascertained whether Samchan purchased the Manager’s Check on behalf of other parties,” Busa said. 

But he said there were “reasonable grounds” to believe the funds came from unlawful activities when considered in the context of the allegations raised by the Office of the Ombudsman.

Busa said Golden Pheasant is 99.99% owned by lawyer Jose Raulito Paras, Romualdez’s fraternity brother at Upsilon Sigma Phi. 

The AMLC found no direct transactions between Paras and the company, he said.

Busa also testified that five bank accounts of Romualdez sent P174 million and $2.8 million to Braavos Holdings, a company reportedly linked to Paras, on Oct. 1, 2025. Bank documents state the purpose as “Investment to the Company.”

He also cited $2 million in remittances from Paras to Harvard University, labeled “charitable gift,” and $5.5 million to Cornell University. The Harvard remittances were funded by cash deposits, he said.

Another AMLC financial investigator said companies tied to Paras moved billions of pesos that were far out of proportion to their capital.

Atty. McDonald Carsula, a bank officer at the AMLC Secretariat, said the probe began after a June 22, 2026 letter-referral from the Ombudsman covering 10 individuals and entities tied to the alleged flood control scheme. 

The AMLC later found probable cause that the accounts were related to unlawful activity.

Carsula said Clearspring Holdings Corporation, 99% owned by Paras, logged P4.4 billion in inflows from 2023 to 2026 despite a paid-up capital of only P4 million.

“The amount of transactions materially increased from millions to billions, which are grossly not commensurate with its paid-up capital,” he said.

He said Clearspring sent P2.284 billion to Darpen Computer Trading in April 2026, and Darpen returned about P1.142 billion, often the same day and in matching amounts. Darpen then moved funds to a digital asset exchange, which Carsula said was “a typical example of layering.”

Carsula said Romualdez moved P336.73 million from five bank accounts to Braavos Holdings on Oct. 1, 2025.

“Although these circumstances do not independently establish the purpose of Romualdez’s transfers, the movement of P336.736 million directly from his bank accounts to a corporation solely owned and controlled by Atty. Paras provides a concrete financial link between the two,” he said in his judicial affidavit. 

He also said Brightnews Corporation, owned almost entirely by Paras, received P27.78 million in checks from a bank account of Romualdez’s wife Yedda.

“While the bank reports did not specify the purpose or underlying consideration for these transactions, it nevertheless show the direct financial link between Yedda and the corporation,” he said.

Brightnews bought the P1.6-billion property at 14 Narra in Forbes Park through two manager’s checks funded by Trans Middle East Phils Equities Inc., which owns RYM Business Management Corporation, he said. Carsula said RYM is reportedly led by Romualdez.

Samchan Foreign Exchange Corp. also funded two P25-million manager’s checks naming Romualdez as beneficiary in November 2024 and transferred P9.95 million to his son in June 2025. 

It also sent P1.011 billion to Valiant Consolidated Resources, 99.99% owned by Paras, and P300 million to RYM.

Carsula said the transactions, read with the Ombudsman’s allegations, “provide reasonable grounds” that Samchan’s accounts were used to move funds connected to unlawful activities.