Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, who is under the protective custody of the Senate, has exited the premises of the Upper Chamber.
A Senate official reportedly confirmed this to another senator on Thursday, May 14.
This development came after a group of armed men attempted to enter the chamber’s premises through the second floor on Wednesday night but were stopped by personnel from the Office of the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms.
Tensions rose as a series of gunshots were fired, though no injuries were reported.
Sources said Dela Rosa left the Senate building around 2 a.m., reportedly using Senator Robin Padilla’s car.
Earlier this week, the Senate, under the leadership of newly elected Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano, placed Dela Rosa under protective custody after agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) attempted to serve an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The warrant is connected to the ICC’s investigation into former president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs.
Dela Rosa, then the country’s top police official, was responsible for implementing Duterte’s controversial anti-drug campaign. (Hannah Torregoza)
