The Philippine National Police’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Group will bring obstruction of justice complaints before the Department of Justice’s National Prosecution Service against Senator Robinhood Padilla and several individuals it says played active roles in Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa’s departure from the Senate in the early hours of May 14.
The CIDG said its investigation concluded that the exit was not a spontaneous or incidental event. “When individuals actively interfere in the arrest or assist in the evasion of criminal offenders to avoid prosecution, it undermines the justice system and compromises public order,” the agency said in a statement Wednesday.
CCTV footage reviewed by the PNP showed a white Fortuner leaving the Senate compound at around 2:30 a.m. on May 14, with Dela Rosa and Padilla observed boarding the vehicle — which was registered under Padilla’s name, according to PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr.
Padilla has consistently denied any wrongdoing. In a Net25 interview, the senator said Dela Rosa had simply asked to hitch a ride, explaining that the latter had no vehicle because he had arrived at the Senate aboard Senator Alan Peter Cayetano’s car. “Ang sabi ni Senator Bato, ‘Sasabay na ko.’ Alangan naming tanggihan ko yun?” Padilla said. He added that Dela Rosa disembarked in Makati, where his own vehicle was supposedly waiting, and that he did not ask where Dela Rosa intended to go.
The CIDG dismissed that account, characterizing the movement as a highly coordinated, pre-planned logistical maneuver specifically designed to avoid detection while exiting the building under cover of darkness.
Padilla had earlier been identified as a person of interest by the National Bureau of Investigation for allegedly facilitating Dela Rosa’s departure from the Senate. The senator, for his part, maintained that no legal basis existed for the arrest at the time, arguing that the ICC warrant against Dela Rosa was not enforceable without a corresponding local court order.
The Supreme Court had already denied Dela Rosa’s petition for a temporary restraining order against the ICC arrest warrant, effectively keeping it enforceable. The warrant is tied to the crimes against humanity case against former President Rodrigo Duterte, now detained at the ICC, over killings linked to his administration’s drug war.
The DOJ has since issued subpoenas as part of a widening investigation, ordering the production of records from the Senate, the Commission on Audit, and the PNP’s Firearms and Explosives Office to establish a documentary trail. Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida said a special panel of prosecutors is handling preliminary investigation proceedings, during which parties will have the right to submit counter-affidavits.
Dela Rosa remains at large. The CIDG has said that upon his arrest, he will be turned over to the DOJ immediately after the booking procedure is completed, regardless of whether it is the PNP or the NBI that locates him first.
