ICC names dela Rosa, Go and others as 'co-perpetrators' in bloody drug war
The International Criminal Court has named Rodrigo Duterte's co-perpetrators in his crimes against humanity case over the bloody drug war when he was the Davao City mayor and the Philippine president.
In the 16-page, lesser redacted version of the document containing Duterte's charges, the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC has named Senators Bato dela Rosa and Bong Go, former NCRPO regional director and police chief Oscar Albayalde, and other personalities as "co-perpetrators in murder and attempted murder of alleged drug criminals during his term.
It said that between November 2011 and March 19, 2019, the former president and his co-perpetrators allegedly acted under a shared plan to “neutralize” alleged criminals in the Philippines—including individuals believed or accused of involvement in illegal drugs—by means of violent acts, including murder.
Among those identified as “high-ranking” officials who were named as co-perpetrators are:
- Sen. Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa, chief of the Davao City Police (January 2012 to October 2013), and former PNP chief (July 2016 to April 2018)
- Sen. Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, long-time aide and former special assistant to the president
- Vitaliano Aguirre II, former justice secretary (July 2016 to April 2018)
- Camilo Cascolan, former PNP chief (September 2018- October 2019). He passed away in November 2023.
- Oscar Albayalde, former PNP chief (April 2018-October 2019)
- Dante Gierran, former National Bureau of Investigation regional director for Davao (2013-2016) and later NBI chief (2016-2020)
- Isidro Lapeña, former Davao City police chief and chief of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (2016-2017)
- Vicente Danao, former Davao City police chief (October 2013-June 2016)
- other members of the PNP and high-ranking government officials.
Per the prosecutor, Duterte was charged with three counts of crimes, namely:
- Murders in or around Davao City during the Mayoral period by the DDS, specifically noting 19 killings
- Murders of High-Value Targets during the Presidential period, noting the deaths of "high-value targets" and "drug lords" in the PRRD list, following a reward system of P50,000 to P1 million
- Murders and attempted murders in barangay clearance operations during the Presidential period, which refers to deaths in local police operations, including three children
It noted that Duterte was responsible for designing a policy to kill alleged criminals through anti-illegal drugs campaign "Double Barrel," establishing and overseeing DDS, issuing kill orders against alleged drug dealers and users, making strategic appointments of officials to help with execution of crimes, offering financial incentives for killings, and encouraging killings of the alleged criminals both when he was a Davao City mayor and president.
The prosecutor also said that the DDS and/or the National Network conducted a widespread and systematic attack against civilians in the Philippines from November 1, 2011 to March 16, 2019.
Before this, the Pre-Trial Chamber had allowed both the prosecution and defense to present new evidence in the case against Duterte.
ICC assistant to counsel Atty. Kristina Conti had earlier said that Dela Rosa and Albayalde may be served their warrant of arrest next for their roles in Duterte's drug war.
Dela Rosa previously stated he has “no regrets" over thousands of extrajudicial killings and is ready to face the ICC. He hasn't been attending any Senate sessions since November 2025, after Ombudsman Jesus Remulla said that the ICC has issued an arrest warrant against him.
Meanwhile, Albayalde previously said that all of their police operations were legal.
The said charges will be read during the hearing on Monday, Feb. 23.