Supreme Court denies dela Rosa’s bid to block ICC arrest

Voting 9-5-1, the Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday denied the request of Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and status quo ante order (SQAO) to prevent his arrest following the issuance of a warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

“The SC, in a vote of 9-5-1, denied the prayer for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and/or status quo ante order (SQAO) filed by Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ M. Dela Rosa,” the High Court said.

Dela Rosa had asked the court to prevent Philippine authorities from arresting him based on any warrant issued by the ICC, any red notice or diffusion from the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), or any foreign judicial or quasi-judicial instrument without a warrant issued by a Philippine court.

Among the agencies named in his petition were the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Philippine National Police (PNP), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Bureau of Immigration (BI), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).

The SC clarified that it had only ruled on the senator’s request for interim relief and that the main issues raised in the petition remain pending.

“The SC only decided on the prayers for interim relief. The main issues raised by the parties in their pleadings and motions are yet to be resolved in the main case,” the court said.

The High Court also announced that the full resolution, along with the separate concurring and dissenting opinions of the justices, will be uploaded to the SC website on Monday, May 25.

Dela Rosa, a former PNP chief and a key figure in the Duterte administration’s war on drugs, has denied involvement in alleged extrajudicial killings (EJK) linked to the government’s anti-drug campaign.

The wanted senator's whereabouts remain unknown after he left the Senate premises last week following a gunfire incident involving the Office of the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms (OSAA) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).