MANILA – The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has renewed its call for Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa to voluntarily surrender while confirming that efforts to serve an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against him are ongoing.
NBI chief Melvin Matibag said law enforcement considers the senator a potentially “armed and dangerous” individual under standard operating procedures used in serving arrest warrants.
“In all cases involving warrant targets, we prepare for the possibility that the subject may be armed and may resist arrest,” Matibag said in a briefing held in Quezon City.
He appealed directly to the senator to cooperate with authorities.
“I am asking Senator Bato to surrender peacefully and voluntarily, as this is part of due process,” he added.
Matibag also expressed belief that Dela Rosa has not left the country despite his current unknown whereabouts.
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice earlier confirmed that the Philippine National Police and NBI have been instructed to execute the arrest order following the Supreme Court’s decision to reject Dela Rosa’s request for a temporary restraining order.
The senator was last seen at the Senate in Pasay City on May 14, shortly after participating in proceedings that led to the removal of Senate President Vicente Sotto III.
Dela Rosa is facing an ICC warrant over allegations tied to extrajudicial killings during the previous administration’s anti-drug campaign.
