Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida warned that Senator Ronald dela Rosa would be arrested if he attempts to leave the country following the issuance of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity.
Dela Rosa, who is facing charges before the ICC alongside former President Rodrigo Duterte, was last publicly seen at the Senate on Wednesday night.
Vida said the government remains committed to fulfilling its obligations to arrest and surrender individuals wanted by an international tribunal.
“The DOJ will treat any attempt of Senator Dela Rosa to leave the country as a mockery of justice,” Vida said, adding that law enforcement and border control authorities have been instructed to arrest the senator should he attempt to depart the Philippines.
According to Vida, the Department of Justice is waiting for the resolution of Dela Rosa’s pending petition before the Supreme Court seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) against his arrest.
The justice chief said that once immigration authorities intercept Dela Rosa at the border through the immigration lookout bulletin order (ILBO) issued by the DOJ, law enforcement agents would immediately carry out the arrest based on the ICC warrant.
An ILBO allows authorities to monitor the movements of an individual but does not prohibit overseas travel. A hold-departure order, which can only be issued by a court, is needed to formally bar a person from leaving the country.
Vida clarified that the DOJ is not seeking assistance from International Criminal Police Organization in pursuing Dela Rosa and would instead directly comply with the ICC request.
He noted that the situation differs from previous efforts involving Duterte because Dela Rosa remains a sitting senator and still has pending cases before the Supreme Court.
The justice secretary also acknowledged the ICC’s jurisdiction over alleged crimes committed before the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in 2019, citing the Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling in Pangilinan v. Cayetano, which stated that withdrawal from the ICC does not erase obligations incurred while the country was still a member.
Meanwhile, the DOJ has formed a special panel of prosecutors to investigate the shooting incident inside the Senate compound on Wednesday, where at least 32 gunshots were reportedly fired.
Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano earlier said 27 of the shots came from members of the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms. Hours after the incident, Dela Rosa reportedly left the Senate premises before dawn on Thursday.
