Philippine senator flees ICC after being arrested for his role in Duterte’s drug war | Stories of Rodrigo Duterte

Senator Ronald Dela Rosa has evaded a warrant for giving him narcotic drugs.

A Philippine diplomat has fled inside the country’s parliament when the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for his actions in the deadly drug war that took place in the country.

Ronald Dela Rosa was filmed by local media fleeing the Senate building on Monday, as police sought to detain him.

The ruling, which has been under seal since November, was prompted by the former police chief’s actions in President Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly war on drugs, which critics say killed thousands of people during his 2016-2022 presidency.

The ICC confirmed on Monday evening that the document was submitted privately on November 6. It names Dela Rosa as a “direct participant” in the “crime against humanity of murder”.

The former police chief is accused of murders that took place between July 2016 and April 2018.

Escape

Duterte has been accused of creating, financing and arming death squads to kill suspected drug dealers and users during his tenure as president.

The former head of state was He was arrested and taken to The Hague by the ICC in March 2025. The crimes against humanity charges were confirmed in April this year.

The ICC has named eight people involved in the crimes, including Dela Rosa, who led the Philippine police during the war on drugs and oversaw operations that human rights groups say killed thousands of people.

Rumors of an impending document in November saw Dela Rosa leave the group. However, he rose again on Monday to vote in the Senate leadership election with Duterte ally Alan Peter Cayetano.

However, when he arrived at the parliament, he found the National Bureau of Investigation waiting, and local television showed him fleeing through the corridors of the chamber.

Cayetano quickly put the Senate on “Lockdown” and told reporters that he would only respect the order imposed by the Philippine court.

Later on Monday, Dela Rosa took to Facebook to ask for help.

“They want to fly me to The Hague,” he said. “I became the chief of the Philippine police to do a job, so you’re going to do this to me?”