By Benjamin Pulta | Philippine News Agency
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said Wednesday that the Senate was not under attack, contrary to former Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano’s claim during the May 13 shooting incident.
DOJ Secretary Fredderick Vida said this was one of the findings of a special panel of prosecutors that conducted an independent and thorough investigation into the tensions triggered by the presence of Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who is facing an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
“The Senate building was not under attack on the 9th of May 13, 2026,” Sec. Vida announced in a press briefing.
Sec. Vida said the panel also found that the action taken by the Office of the Senate Sergeant at Arms against the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) was not justified.
The prosecutors, however, concluded that the NBI attempted to implement the arrest warrant for Dela Rosa, a co-accused alongside former President Rodrigo Duterte in the ICC probe into the “crimes against humanity” of murder linked to the bloody war on drugs.
The panel also said that because the ICC warrant was unsealed and made public on May 11, any person who helped Dela Rosa escape “may be held liable.”
“The findings of the panel were based on evidence submitted by the PNP CIDG (Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group), members of the media, and the GSIS (Government Service Insurance System), including an ocular inspection of the GSIS premises,” Vida said.
The NBI earlier said it was asked by the GSIS to secure art pieces, as the Senate and the GSIS share the same compound in Pasay City.
Vida said the leadership of Cayetano did not allow the panel to inspect the Senate premises, but they would again request new Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian to deepen the investigation of the DOJ’s special panel.
“To date, no further action or communication has been taken by the Senate regarding the request. And based on the initial findings, the recommendations of the panel include one: to identify and establish the culpability of all persons who conspired and aided the escape of Senator Dela Rosa in the early morning of 14 May 2026,” he said.
He said the special panel will also determine whether the NBI and media accounts that sniper shots appeared to have been fired from the fifth floor of the Senate building towards the identifiable NBI vehicle parked at the GSIS premises were part of the orchestrated plan to facilitate the escape of Sen. dela Rosa.
“At this stage, the investigation remains active and ongoing,” Sec. Vida said.
