Manila Posts 50 Million Peso Bounty for Former Police Chief Ronald Dela Rosa
The Philippine government has offered a 50 million peso bounty—approximately Rp 14,3 miliar—for information leading to the arrest of former senator and national police chief Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, CNN Indonesia reported on October 23. Dela Rosa is currently a fugitive following an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague in connection with extrajudicial killings during the country’s war on drugs. Dela Rosa is a key law enforcement figure in the anti-narcotics campaign carried out by former Rodrigo Duterte.
Juanito Victor Remulla announced the reward during an October 23 press conference, designating the former senator as armed and dangerous. Remulla criticized Dela Rosa for hiding since the ICC unsealed its arrest warrant in November 2025, calling him a coward for continuing to hide and stating, It’s time for decisive action. It’s time for justice for the victims.
as reported by The Strait Times. Secret arrest warrants from the ICC were initially issued in November of last year.
ICC Charges and the War on Drugs Timeline
The ICC indictment places specific scrutiny on the deadly anti-narcotics campaign that defined the early years of Rodrigo Duterte’s presidency. The Hague-based court’s sealed warrant accuses Dela Rosa of acting as an indirect co-conspirator in murders committed between July 2016 and April 2018. Specifically, the court’s documents charge him with responsibility for the deaths of no fewer than 32 individuals during that period. The ICC investigation covers a broad timeframe from 2011, when Duterte served as Davao City mayor, through 2019 during his presidency. Ronald dela Rosa was appointed as the first Philippine National Police Chief directly by Duterte upon becoming president in 2016, spearheading the massive anti-drug operations at the start of the administration before later serving as a high-ranking prison official and winning a Senate seat in the 2019 election. Dela Rosa was last seen attending a Senate session in May before fleeing after the ICC published the warrant, and briefly emerged from months of hiding in mid-May before slipping away days later.
Official figures regarding the total death toll of the narcotics crackdown show a stark contrast between state and independent tallies. As Kompas.com reported, the Philippine National Police recorded more than 6,000 deaths during the operations, while human rights organizations estimate the actual toll reached up to 30,000 fatalities. Both Duterte and Dela Rosa have consistently denied authorizing any extrajudicial killings throughout the campaign, although the ICC probe investigates drug-related killings across this extended timeframe.
Police Task Force Tracks Fugitive Senator Dela Rosa
Philippine authorities have established a special police task force led by a general to track down the fugitive senator. Interior Minister Remulla stated that intelligence places Dela Rosa in the southern region of the Philippines. Law enforcement officials are actively pursuing negotiations to convince the former police chief to surrender peacefully and avoid a fatal armed confrontation, according to Kompas.com. Remulla stated, We have given all due respect to a senator of the Republic of the Philippines, but he has shown nothing but cowardice by running away and remaining in hiding,
and added, It’s time for decisive action. It’s time for justice for the victims.
Government officials have pledged to transfer Dela Rosa directly to the ICC in the Netherlands upon his capture. This legal pursuit parallels the ongoing proceedings against former President Duterte, who was detained at Manila International Airport in March of last year before being flown to Europe. Duterte faces trial before the ICC starting November 30, marking the next major judicial milestone in the international investigation.
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