Philippine authorities are investigating reports that a senator wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) has secretly fled the Senate premises where he had been evading arrest for days, an official said on Thursday.
Dela Rosa's Disappearance
Presidential Communications Undersecretary Clare Castro told a press conference that officials were trying to confirm the whereabouts of Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa after reports suggested he slipped out of the heavily guarded building before dawn on Thursday.
"Several sources confirmed that the Senator, Senator Bato, is no longer in the Senate premises, but we are still getting official confirmation," Castro said, adding that no arrest operations had been launched so far.
Background of the Case
Dela Rosa is wanted by the ICC for his alleged role in overseeing former President Rodrigo Duterte's deadly "war on drugs," which saw thousands killed. He avoided arrest earlier this week by outrunning government agents and taking protective custody offered by allies in the Senate chamber.
Further chaos erupted on Wednesday night when gunshots were fired inside the Senate building, forcing journalists to scramble for cover. Dela Rosa had earlier said his arrest was imminent and called for supporters to gather outside the Senate to protect him.
Government Response
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. later said no government personnel were involved in the shooting and that there were no instructions to arrest dela Rosa. He questioned whether the event was an attempt to "destabilise the government or trigger chaos."
An investigation into the shooting is ongoing. Police said on Thursday they had detained a person in connection with the incident. Philippine police spokesperson Brigadier-General Randulf Tuano said the man was apprehended on the second floor of the Senate building. Interior Secretary Juanito Victor Remulla said Senate security fired "warning shots" at several unknown armed men who had gone up the Senate stairway.
Dela Rosa's Role in the Drug War
Dela Rosa was head of the Philippine National Police during Duterte's administration and was a chief enforcer of anti-drug crackdowns in which thousands of people were killed. He is one of eight co-perpetrators named by the ICC in their case against Duterte, who is now detained at The Hague. An arrest warrant accuses dela Rosa of "authorising, condoning and promoting" drug war killings, providing weapons, promising impunity, and rewarding perpetrators, according to an ICC arrest warrant unsealed on Monday.
Dela Rosa did not respond to a request for comment but has denied wrongdoing. Earlier on Thursday, while entering the Senate, his lawyer Jimmy Bondoc said he spoke to him during the night and believed he was inside. "I asked him if you have plans to leave, he said none," Bondoc told reporters.
