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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider NBI witness affirms 'Operation Romanov' about Marcos' family, not VP Duterte

NBI witness affirms 'Operation Romanov' about Marcos' family, not VP Duterte

Published Jul 14, 2026 04:06 pm

At A Glance

  • NBI Regional Director Jeremy Lotoc testified that the alleged "Operation Romanov" was more consistent with a threat against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his family—not Vice President Sara Duterte—since the term was first publicly used by Davao City Mayor Sebastian "Baste" Duterte.
  • Lotoc said information about the supposed Romanov plot provided by "Princess Maui" was not considered reliable by the NBI Cybercrime Division, questioning why the alleged plot was later framed as a threat against the Vice President.
  • During questioning by senator-judges Raffy Tulfo and Panfilo Lacson, Lotoc agreed that the "Romanov" reference originally appeared to warn or threaten the First Family.
The alleged "Romanov" plot was directed at the family of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.—not Vice President Sara Duterte—according to National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Regional Director Jeremy Lotoc, who testified before the Senate impeachment court on Tuesday, July 14.
House prosecution witness NBI Regional Director Jeremy Lotoc (Senate PRIB photo)
House prosecution witness NBI Regional Director Jeremy Lotoc (Senate PRIB photo)
"Kay Mayor Baste nagsimula ang 'Romanov', bakit dito ito yung tinatanong ni Princess Maui sa Bise Presidente? Medyo it doesn't make sense (It was Mayor Baste who started ‘Romanov,’ so why is Princess Maui asking the Vice President about it? It doesn’t really make sense)," Lotoc said in response to Senator-judge Erwin Tulfo.
Lotoc also stated that the information regarding the Romanov plot that came from a certain Princess Maui is not reliable as far as the NBI Cybercrime Division is concerned.
Senator-judge Raffy Tulfo pointed out that Davao City Mayor Sebastian "Baste" Duterte was the first to publicly mention the "Romanov" reference in January 2024, when he told President Marcos, "Think of the Romanovs".
"Parang sinasabi niya na baka mangyari sa pamilya niyo 'yon, gaya ng nangyari sa inyo noong 1986. Uh, kung tama yung memory ko, sir, uh, parang ganun po ang sinasabi ni Mayor Baste (It’s like he’s saying that it might happen to your family, just like what happened to you back in 1986. Uh, if my memory is right, sir, uh, that’s kind of what Mayor Baste is saying)," Lotoc said.
Duterte's statements about having spoken to someone to kill President Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez was made in response to a question of a certain Princess Maui during the November 2024 press conference, where she mentioned "Operation Romanov", an alleged assassination and surveillance plot targeting Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte and her family.
Duterte's defense used this during the impeachment trial to justify her alleged threats.
Senator-judge Raffy said that he found it confusing that Princess Maui asked this during the press conference since it came from Mayor Baste.
"I just want to make it, uh, clear, uh, Mr. Presiding Officer, na yung threat na yun (that threat), yung Romanov na salita (the Romanov term), it was used to warn, as a threat, to the first family. The word "Romanov" came from the mouth of Mayor Baste Duterte, na para bang binabantaan niya yung First Family (like he's threatening the First Family) You follow me, Mr. Witness?," Senator Raffy asked Lotoc.
Lotoc replied in the affirmative.
Meanwhile, Senator-judge Panfilo Lacson asked Lotoc if his impression of the Romanov plot is that it's against Vice President Duterte.
Lotoc said that he does not think so, considering that the context of the Romanov plot is that it's against President Marcos and his family.
"Nung tinanong ni Princess Maui, doon kami nagtaka, anong ibig sabihin ng Romanov, anong context niya ng Romanov, bakit against the Vice President? Di naman siya part of the First Family (When Princess Maui asked about it, that’s when we wondered—what does ‘Romanov’ mean, what’s its context, and why is it directed against the Vice President? He’s not even part of the First Family)," he said.
This is the reason, according to Lotoc, why they invited Princess Maui to shed light on what she knows of Operation Romanov, but she didn't appear.
But Lacson pointed out that it was only during the impeachment trial that they realized that the Romanov plot was against President Marcos, which Lotoc agreed to.

Related Tags

Jeremy Lotoc Vice President Sara Duterte Baste Duterte impeachment trial
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