The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has established a definitive lead on the hiding place of fugitive Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa but is withholding the details to protect ongoing tracking operations, officials confirmed on Tuesday.
NBI Director Melvin Matibag announced the development during a press briefing but declined to specify the lawmaker’s exact coordinates to avoid compromising the closing net.
“We have a lead kung nasaan talaga (si Dela Rosa),” Matibag told reporters.
(“We have a lead on where [Dela Rosa] really is.”)
“Pero in the meantime, we will suspend ‘yung announcement kung nasaan talaga siya,” the NBI chief added.
(“But in the meantime, we will suspend the announcement on where he really is.”)
The former top cop vanished from the Senate complex in the early hours of May 14, following a high-profile shooting incident inside the legislative premises just one night after his initial “escape” attempt.
Dela Rosa’s sudden departure effectively stripped him of the protective custody previously extended by the upper chamber. Senators had granted him refuge within the complex specifically to shield him from an outstanding International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant. Prior to his disappearance, Dela Rosa had briefly surfaced on May 11—ending a six-month truancy from legislative duties—to cast his vote installing Alan Peter Cayetano as the new Senate President.
Despite his current evasion of law enforcement, Dela Rosa’s legal counsel insisted in a 16-page response filed before the Supreme Court on Monday that the senator has not fled the country. Responding to the Office of the Solicitor General, his defense team maintained that the ex-PNP chief remains within Philippine territory and continues to recognize and invoke the jurisdiction of the high tribunal.
The lawmaker is currently facing grave charges of crimes against humanity for murder before the international tribunal, stemming from his leadership role in former President Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly anti-drug campaign.
According to the ICC arrest order, Dela Rosa bears direct responsibility for the state-backed killings of at least 32 people during his tenure as chief of the Philippine National Police from July 2016 to April 2018.