A pursuit in the senate, gunfire, now on the run: why is a former Philippines police chief in hiding?

Ronald dela Rosa, a former head of police in the Philippines, is wanted for alleged crimes against humanity over his role in a bloody “war on drugs” during Rodrigo Duterte’s 2016-2022 presidency. The controversial senator has gone into hiding after a dramatic entry, then escape from the senate building in Manila last week.

The Philippines justice secretary has since ordered his arrest, calling him a “fugitive from justice”.

Who is Ronald dela Rosa?

Dela Rosa, 64, is a Philippine senator and former head of national police, who is known for his role as the chief enforcer of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s so-called “war on drugs”.

Known by the nickname “Bato”, which translates as “rock”, he is a celebrity-like figure in the Philippines, where he cultivated a tough-talking image, often making violent threats against drug dealers.

His close ties with Duterte date back to their shared roots in Davao, in Mindanao, southern Philippines, where dela Rosa served as city police chief from 2012-13 and Duterte was mayor for more than 20 years cumulatively.

It was in Davao that Duterte first rolled out his ruthless approach to law enforcement and established the Davao Death Squad (DDS), a group of police officers and non-police hitmen whose task was to kill alleged criminals, including drug dealers, according to International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutors. Dela Rosa is accused of helping to recruit individuals and direct the group.

Rodrigo Duterte holds a rifle next to national police chief Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa — In this 2018 photo, Duterte holds an Israeli-made Galil rifle, presented to him by dela Rosa. Photograph: Bullit Marquez/AP

When Duterte was elected president in 2016, he appointed dela Rosa head of Philippine national police to implement his “war on drugs” on a national scale. Dela Rosa vowed to “crush” drug lords, and once told crowds of surrendering drug users they could “kill” drug lords. “Pour gasoline on their houses and burn them. Show your anger,” he said.

Police say more than 6,000 suspects were killed in official anti-drug operations during Duterte’s presidency. Activists say the real death toll may never be known, with some estimates suggesting as many as 30,000 may have been killed.

After leaving the police force, dela Rosa was appointed the director general of Bureau of Corrections, before successfully running for the senate in 2019. He won a second senatorial term in May 2025.

Why is he wanted by the ICC?

The ICC has issued an arrest warrant for dela Rosa for alleged crimes against humanity for his role in Duterte’s “war on drugs”. Duterte was arrested last year and is imprisoned awaiting trial in The Hague.

The arrest warrant, first issued confidentially in November, but unsealed this month, accuses dela Rosa of implementing the “war on drugs” at a national level. This includes “encouraging the police to legitimise killings through fictitious self-defence scenarios, and promising impunity” and “ordering the police to kill specific targets and planning killing operations”. It also accuses him of “expressing approval and rewarding perpetrators of killings” and making public statements “authorising, condoning and promoting” the killing of alleged criminals.

Ronald dela Rosa swears an oath in the Senate — Dela Rosa, pictured in 2016, was appointed police chief by Duterte. Photograph: Bullit Marquez/AP

ICC prosecutors also accuse him of playing a role in recruiting individuals who he could “trust and control” to the DDS in Davao. Members were easily replaced, the warrant says, adding that members were killed for opposing orders, “wanting to leave the DDS, or having too much information about the DDS killings”.

Dela Rosa has previously denied involvement in illegal killings. Duterte, who is accused of crimes against humanity, has also denied the charges against him.

Where is Dela Rosa?

Dela Rosa was last seen in public at the senate last week, when he made a surprise appearance after six months staying out of the public eye to avoid arrest.

He attended the senate to take part in a vote that would benefit his ally, the vice-president, Sara Duterte, the daughter of the former imprisoned leader.

CCTV footage shows law enforcement agents chasing dela Rosa up the stairs inside the senate building. Photograph: Senate of the Philippines/Reuters

In bizarre and dramatic scenes, he was chased through hallways and up staircases in the senate by government agents seeking his arrest. Dela Rosa managed to outpace them, and his allies in the senate granted him protective custody, a concept some deem legally dubious.

Dela Rosa remained inside the senate for three days in a standoff with the authorities. Tensions escalated into gunfire, for unclear reasons, and he disappeared from the heavily guarded building in the early hours of Thursday, 14 May. Some reports suggested he drove off in an SUV with a fellow Duterte-aligned senator.

His whereabouts are not known.

What happens next?

The justice secretary, Fredderick Vida, announced on Thursday that law enforcement had been ordered to apprehend dela Rosa, after the supreme court rejected the senator’s attempts to block his arrest. “We are pursuing this so that the ends of justice may be achieved,” Vida said.

Many questions remain over dela Rosa’s case. It’s unclear how dela Rosa managed to escape from the heavily guarded senate building last week without detection. It’s also unclear why the authorities had not previously acted on the ICC arrest warrant, which was first issued confidentially in November.

Vida said law enforcement agencies have “leads” on dela Rosa’s whereabouts and that the arrest would be carried out as soon as possible. In the unpredictable world of Philippine politics, it’s very difficult to know what might happen next.