MANILA — Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa’s legal team dismissed as unverified and speculative the circulating claims that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued a warrant of arrest against the former police chief, urging the public and the media to “exercise restraint and verify facts first.”
Atty. Israelito Torreon, Dela Rosa’s counsel, appealed for calm amid confusion triggered by conflicting pronouncements from officials and online posts.
“We have been made aware of circulating reports claiming that the International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant against Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa,” Torreon said. “At this point, we do not have independent confirmation as to whether or not this information is accurate. We therefore urge the public and the media to exercise caution and restraint in sharing or interpreting such reports until verified information is officially released by competent authorities or by the ICC itself.”
Dela Rosa, who led the Philippine National Police from 2016 to 2018, oversaw former president Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war on drugs — the centerpiece of the ICC probe launched in 2018 to determine possible crimes against humanity linked to thousands of killings during the campaign.
Torreon said Dela Rosa’s camp has not received any formal notice from the ICC or any competent authority. He stressed that if an arrest order does exist, it must go through proper judicial channels in line with the Constitution.
“If proven true, we trust that the Philippine government will act in accordance with the rule of law, and that any such action shall first pass through the proper local judicial confirmation process consistent with our Constitution, due process, and the sovereign rights of the Republic of the Philippines,” he said.
The statement came as top officials offered differing accounts of the alleged ICC action. Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla told dzRH the warrant had already been issued, though he provided no proof. Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, meanwhile, said the ICC might have issued it but “might not have yet coursed the service through the Interpol.”
The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) confirmed that the Philippine Center on Transnational Crime has not received any Interpol red notice.
“At present, there is no actionable document for the Department to respond to,” the agency said, noting its current focus on recovery efforts in Cebu and preparations for Typhoon “Uwan.”
Likewise, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said it has not been notified of any ICC action.
“The Department of Foreign Affairs and the Philippine Embassy in The Hague have not received any warrant of arrest or related documents from the ICC, nor has any such document been uploaded in the ICC online portal,” DFA spokesperson Angelica Escalona said.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III reminded authorities that no arrest can be made within Senate premises, invoking institutional courtesy.
“To preserve the dignity of the Senate… we cannot allow any senator to be arrested in the Senate premises. Outside the Senate premises, that’s no longer our concern,” he said./PN
