Senator Antonio Trillanes  pleaded not guilty to libel charges, which President Rodrigo Duterte’s son and son-in-law filed against him before a Davao City court, according to a radio report yesterday.
Former Davao City vice mayor Paolo Duterte and lawyer Manases Carpio filed several libel cases against Trillanes who linked the two to an extortion scheme involving transport network vehicles (TNVs).
Trillanes flew to Davao City for his arraignment to show his respect for all courts in the country, radio dzMM said, quoting the senator.
Trillanes entered his not guilty plea before the Davao Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 54.
The libel cases were filed against Trillanes in late 2018 when the president revoked Trillanes’ amnesty for the crimes of rebellion and coup d’etat in 2003 and 2007 against then president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Trillanes returned for the first time to Davao City, which had declared him persona non grata for saying that it was “the most dangerous city” in the Philippines.