The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Friday dismissed rumors claiming Vice President Sara Duterte had been arrested, while confirming that Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa has not fled the country.
Unverified reports of Duterte’s apprehension surfaced after NBI Director Melvin Matibag was seen in Davao, leading to public speculation that law enforcement had launched an operation against the Vice President in her family’s political stronghold.
Addressing the rumors during a press briefing at the Eastern Mindanao Command headquarters, Matibag clarified that he has not been informed of any active warrant for Duterte’s arrest.
“I don’t think so. Kasi I heard parang nag-file siya ng motion to dismiss. Let’s wait for the ruling of the court… on the pending omnibus motions and kung merong in-issue na warrant of arrest,” Matibag said.
The case against Duterte was filed by the Department of Justice through the National Prosecution Service before the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, following an investigation conducted by the NBI.
The legal action stems from Duterte’s November 2024 online press conference, in which she publicly stated she had instructed an assassin to target President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez if a supposed plot against her own life were executed.
In a separate update, Matibag addressed the status of Dela Rosa, who went back into hiding after the International Criminal Court (ICC) confirmed an arrest warrant against him regarding the anti-drug campaign during the Duterte administration.
The NBI chief stated that law enforcement agencies are closely tracking Dela Rosa’s movements and monitoring multiple prospective hideouts across the country.
“We have a team who’s tracking him under surveillance and we have identified some areas that we are monitoring. I hope sooner than later we can make our operations ‘pag talagang sigurado na kami doon sa location,” Matibag said.
When questioned about whether the senator had managed to leave the country, the NBI director responded firmly:
“He’s in the Philippines.”