Police, NBI urge Bato Dela Rosa to surrender, face ICC
TURN YOURSELF IN Philippine National Police chief Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. and National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag, shown in this photo during a press conference at Malacañang on May 14, called on Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa on Friday, May 22, to turn himself in and face chargesof crimes against humanity in the International Criminal Court in The Hague, the Netherlands. —MARIANNE BERMUDEZ
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation on Friday appealed to fugitive Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa to surrender and face the charges against him in the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday ordered the PNP and the NBI to execute the ICC arrest warrant against the former national police chief after the Supreme Court denied his request for a temporary restraining order to block the warrant.
Both the DOJ and the Office of the Solicitor General characterized Dela Rosa as a fugitive from justice after he slipped out of the Senate’s “protective custody” in the early hours of May 14.
READ: CIDG says Bato dela Rosa still in PH
PNP chief Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said it was possible that Dela Rosa might seek police custody.
“Seeking protective custody means that one is surrendering,” Nartatez told reporters. “If by all peaceful means he will surrender, yield himself, then that would be better so that we can concentrate on other wanted persons.”
“As of now, he hasn’t requested for protective custody, officially,” he added.
Both Nartatez and NBI Director Melvin Matibag said that once arrested, the senator would be turned over to the DOJ.
READ: NBI chief to Bato dela Rosa: ‘Better for you to surrender’
“And from there, the [DOJ] will be the one to take care of Senator Bato,” Matibag said.
‘Ultimate objective’
Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida on Thursday said the “ultimate objective” of Dela Rosa’s arrest “is to bring him to the ICC.”
Matibag told reporters on Friday that the NBI formed a dedicated team to search for Dela Rosa.
“I have to appeal to Senator Bato, maybe he is watching, it would be better if he just surrendered, because it’s just two things—get arrested or surrender,” he said. “It’s an option to surrender.”
On Thursday, Matibag said that the senator would be arrested “whether he likes it or not because we have to implement the law without fear or favor.”
Police Maj. Gen. Robert Alexander Morico II, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, said that the senator “is still inside the country, and we will enforce that warrant of arrest.”
Nartatez earlier said that the PNP’s border control units had been alerted to watch out for Dela Rosa.
Dela Rosa rode in a car owned by one of his staunchest allies, Sen. Robinhood Padilla, in his predawn departure from the Senate.
He said in a television interview that he showed up on May 11 at the Senate after a six-month absence so he could vote for Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano as the new Senate president. He managed to escape from several NBI agents who were then waiting to arrest him and was later taken under the Senate’s “protective custody.”
‘Good intel officer’
Asked whether the CIDG was able to track down Dela Rosa’s whereabouts, Morico declined to respond directly to avoid giving a hint of what they know.
“The mindset of Senator Dela Rosa is the same as the mindset of active PNP personnel,” he said. “I am sure even now he is watching, and from my expression, body language and the way I answer, he will interpret that. He is a good intelligence officer.”
Matibag reminded the public that it was their obligation as citizens to help in the arrest of any fugitive from justice, especially since “there were so many victims [in the war on drugs].”
“So he needs to surrender; and to the public that has knowledge that can help law enforcement, I urge you to help law enforcement locate and arrest Sen. Bato de la Rosa,” Matibag said.
Nartatez said the PNP has mobilized tracker teams in coordination with the DOJ and the NBI to arrest the senator.
He said in a statement on Friday that he had issued “clear instructions” that the arrest must be executed with “absolute transparency, full adherence to police operational procedures, and the utmost respect for human rights” and discipline.
Officers should perform their duty “professionally and without political bias, ensuring that the process remains dignified and secure for all parties involved,” Nartatez said.
“There will be no shortcuts and every movement will be heavily aligned with existing protocols to protect constitutional rights and maintain public trust,” Nartatez added.
Dela Rosa is charged as an indirect co-perpetrator in the crimes against humanity case against former President Rodrigo Duterte in connection with his administration’s war on drugs. He served as Duterte’s first PNP chief, from 2016 to 2018.
‘Double Barrel’ enforcer
As PNP chief, he was the main implementer of the brutal antidrug campaign through Memorandum Circular No. 16-2016, also known as “Project Double Barrel”—Duterte’s nationwide antidrug campaign patterned after what was implemented in Davao City when he was mayor.
Official figures showed at least 6,000 people were killed during the six-year bloody crackdown on illegal drugs, but human rights groups estimated that the number could be as high as 30,000.
Once arrested and surrendered to the ICC, Dela Rosa would be held in an ICC detention facility in The Hague, the Netherlands, where Duterte has been detained since March 2025 awaiting trial for crimes against humanity of murder and attempted murder.
