ICC confirms arrest warrant against Bato Dela Rosa
The International Criminal Court has confirmed the arrest warrant issued against Sen. Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa.
“The International Criminal Court confirms that the document published by national authorities of the Republic of the Philippines and circulated in the media is indeed a formal ICC document," The Hague tribunal said, according to a Philippine STAR report.
"The arrest warrant against Mr. Ronald Marapon dela Rosa was issued confidentially, under seal, by Pre-Trial Chamber I of the ICC on 6 November 2025."
The ICC added that it's currently working on unsealing the arrest warrant. Previously, ICC spokesperson Oriane Maillet asserted that there were no public warrants issued in relation to the "situation in the Philippines."
It should be noted that the ICC may withhold information on whether an arrest warrant has been issued against a person.
A classified as secret copy of the warrant obtained by GMA News states that dela Rosa, the former Philippine National Police chief during Rodrigo Duterte's administration, is accused of being an indirect co-perpetrator of crimes against humanity of murder (article 7(1)(a) of the Rome Statute) committed between July 3, 2016 and April 2018, during which "no less than 32 persons were killed." This is in connection with Duterte's bloody drug war.
Dela Rosa appeared in the Senate for the first time since being absent from sessions since November 2025. He hasn't been seen in public since reports of an ICC arrest warrant against him circulated late last year.
During the May 11 Senate session, former senator Antonio Trillanes showed reporters an alleged copy of the ICC arrest warrant against dela Rosa.
Members of the NBI were also on Senate premises, and CCTV footage showed dela Rosa running from members of the bureau in the hallways of the building.
The senator was later seen crying after the commotion, during which he supposedly sustained minor injuries.
Trillanes told the STAR that the arrest warrant was communicated "through proper channels."
Dela Rosa has been put under Senate protective custody, and he has sought protection from the Supreme Court against a warrantless arrest through an urgent manifestation with an omnibus motion.
Apart from an ICC arrest warrant, the senator also faces a subpoena from the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the PNP ordering him to face investigators on May 14 over his alleged involvement in extrajudicial killings in the country. (with reports from Janvic Mateo)