NBI's Lotoc: 'Oplan Romanov' was an alleged threat against First Family

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Regional Director Jeremy Lotoc on Tuesday said he believes "Operation Romanov" referred to an alleged assassination plot against President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. and the First Family—not Vice President Sara Duterte.

Lotoc, a witness presented by the House prosecution panel, made the statement after Senator-Judge Panfilo Lacson asked whether he had the impression that the supposed "Oplan Romanov" threat was directed at the Vice President.

"I don't think so, Your Honor. First of all, the context of Operation Romanov was that it was directed against the First Family. It's definitely against the President and his family," Lotoc said on the fifth day of Duterte's impeachment trial.

"Ngayon nung tinanong ho siya ni Princess Maui, doon kami nagtaka. Anong ibig sabihin ng Romanov? Ano'ng context niya ng Romanov? Bakit against sa Vice President? Hindi naman sila ang First Family eh," he added.

(When Princess Maui asked Duterte, that was when we wondered: What does Romanov mean? What was the context behind Romanov? Why would it be directed at the Vice President? They aren't even the First Family.)

Lotoc said this was why the NBI sought to invite vlogger Princess Maui—who brought up "Operation Romanov" during Duterte's online press conference in November 2024—to clarify the matter. It was during the same press conference that Duterte said she had spoken to someone about killing Marcos if she herself were killed.

However, Princess Maui did not respond to the NBI's invitation.

Lotoc, who previously headed the NBI Cybercrime Division that investigated the alleged threats against Marcos and his family, said the term "Operation Romanov" was first mentioned publicly by Davao City Mayor Sebastian "Baste" Duterte during a Maisug Rally in January 2024.

The Maisug movement is a political coalition formed by supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte and the Duterte family. The term "Maisug" is a Visayan word meaning "brave" or "courageous."

"Based doon sa video na 'yun, January if I'm not mistaken, 'yung Maisug Rally. Ang unang nagbanggit ng Romanov, si Mayor Baste—parang tinatakot niya 'yung Presidente," Lotoc said.

(Based on that video, if I'm not mistaken, it was during the January Maisug Rally. Mayor Baste was the first to mention Romanov. It appeared as though he was threatening the President.)

He said investigators found it puzzling that Princess Maui later asked Vice President Duterte about "Operation Romanov."

"So, medyo nakita namin, teka muna, parang baliktad yata ang sitwasyon. Kung kay Mayor Baste nagsimula ang Romanov, bakit ito 'yung tinatanong ni Princess Maui sa Bise Presidente? So, medyo, it doesn't make sense, sir."

(We thought, wait a minute, the situation seems reversed. If the Romanov issue started with Mayor Baste, why was Princess Maui asking the Vice President about it? It didn't make sense to us.)

Because Princess Maui did not cooperate with the investigation, Lotoc said the NBI classified the alleged "Operation Romanov" plot as "non-validated information."

Lacson also said he had the impression that the Oplan Romanov was a threat supposedly directed against Duterte and her family.

“I don’t know about the other Senator-Judges, pero until today, when Senator-Judge Raffy Tulfo clarified na ‘yun palang Oplan Romanov ay threat against the First Family. Ang impression ko since last week nung pinag-uusapan natin ‘yung Oplan Romanov, ay threat ito against the Vice President,” he said.

(I don't know about the other senator-judges, but I didn’t know until today when Senator-Judge Raffy Tulfo clarified that the Oplan Romanov is a threat against the First Family. My impression since last week when we were talking about Oplan Romanov, is that it is a threat against the Vice President.)

Senator-Judge Erwin Tulfo then asked what the bureau did after failing to obtain confirmation from the vlogger.

Lotoc said investigators turned to open-source information in an attempt to verify the claim.

When Tulfo asked whether he considered Princess Maui's information reliable, Lotoc replied: "It is not reliable, insofar as the Cybercrime Division is concerned."

Senator-Judge Alan Peter Cayetano, however, cautioned against concluding that Mayor Baste Duterte had threatened the First Family.

"Remember, there's a thin line between a warning and a threat," Cayetano said.

"In the same manner that we have to be fair to the First Family, we have to be fair also to Mayor Baste and to the Dutertes, rather than draw a conclusion," he added.

Senator-Judge Robinhood Padilla said "Operation Romanov" should be viewed as a threat against the country's top leaders who have fought the communist movement, including both the Marcos and Duterte families, and therefore could also encompass the Vice President.— MCG, GMA News