(UPDATE) THE International Criminal Court (ICC) has publicly identified Senators Ronald Dela Rosa and Bong Go and seven former senior government and police officials as co-perpetrators in the crimes against humanity case against former president Rodrigo Duterte.
The names were revealed in a lesser-redacted version of the "Document Containing the Charges" (DCC) filed by the Office of the Prosecutor on Friday, Feb. 13, 2026.
The document accused Duterte of indirect co-perpetration, ordering and aiding, and abetting in the murders of at least 78 individuals as part of his "war on drugs" between 2011 and 2019.
Aside from Dela Rosa and Go, the prosecution also named several high-ranking co-perpetrators, including former Philippine National Police (PNP) chiefs Oscar Albayalde, Camilo Cascolan and Vicente Danao, former justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II, former National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) director Dante Gierran and former Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) director Isidro Lapeña.
The 16-page filing sets out the prosecution’s case that Duterte, first as mayor of Davao City and later as president of the Philippines, exercised command over an organized structure of police officers and civilian hitmen responsible for at least 76 murders and two attempted murders formally charged, while asserting that the actual number of victims ran into the hundreds in Davao and thousands nationwide.
Prosecutors argue that from November 2011 until March 2019, Duterte and several senior law enforcement and government officials shared what they describe as a “common plan” to “neutralize” alleged criminals through violent means, particularly murder.
This plan allegedly originated in Davao City, where Duterte had long presided as mayor, and was later expanded across the country once he assumed the presidency in 2016.
The ICC identifies Duterte as an indirect co-perpetrator who stood at the apex of a hierarchical structure that included police units, civilian gunmen and local officials.
In Davao City, this structure operated through the so-called Davao Death Squad, a network of police officers and paid non-police hitmen.
At the national level, prosecutors say it evolved into what they call a “National Network” made up of personnel from the PNP, PDEA, NBI, Bureau of Corrections, and other state-linked actors.
According to the charges, the campaign constituted a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population and was carried out pursuant to a state policy.
Expansion to a National Network
The document details the evolution of the alleged conspiracy. It states that during Duterte's time as mayor of Davao City, he and the named officials used local police and non-police hitmen, collectively referred to as the Davao Death Squad (DDS), to carry out killings.
The charging document specifies that when Duterte became president in June 2016, the plan expanded nationwide.
The co-perpetrators, many of whom were appointed to top national positions — such as Dela Rosa as then PNP chief and Go as special assistant to the president — allegedly established a "National Network" to continue the operations across the Philippines.
The document divides the charges into three broad categories.
The first concerns murders committed in and around Davao City between 2013 and mid-2016, allegedly carried out by members of the Davao Death Squad while Duterte was mayor.
The second focuses on the killing of so-called “high-value targets” between mid-2016 and mid-2017, including prominent figures such as Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr., who was shot inside a jail cell, and Ozamiz City Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog Sr., who was killed during a police raid after Duterte publicly accused him of involvement in the drug trade.
These individuals, prosecutors said, appeared on internal police watchlists known as the “PRRD List,” where officers could receive covert cash rewards for eliminating listed targets with payments ranging from P50,000 to P1 million.
The third category involves murders and attempted murders during so-called village (barangay) clearance operations from 2016 to 2018, targeting lower-level suspects.
Among the most prominent cases cited is the killing of 17-year-old Kian delos Santos in Caloocan City, which drew international outrage and became a symbol of alleged extrajudicial killings under Duterte’s drug war.
The ICC noted that several victims in this group were minors and that some were strangled or suffocated rather than shot.
Prosecutors allege that Duterte exercised control over this system through direct orders, the strategic appointment of loyal officials, the use of financial incentives and promotions, and the creation of an atmosphere of fear in which those who refused to participate risked being harmed or killed themselves.
They also cited Duterte’s public speeches and media appearances, in which he named alleged criminals and openly encouraged lethal force, as evidence of his intent to promote and legitimize the killings.
Under the Rome Statute, Duterte is charged not only with indirect co-perpetration but also with ordering and inducing the crimes, as well as aiding and abetting by providing logistical, political and moral support.
The prosecution maintains that Duterte was fully aware of the criminal nature of the campaign and that he intended violent crimes to be committed as part of official policy.
The redacted document will serve as the basis for the next stage of proceedings scheduled to begin on Feb. 23, in which ICC judges will determine whether the charges are sufficient to move the case to trial.
The prosecution stressed that the incidents listed represent only a fraction of the overall pattern of violence, describing them as illustrative examples of a far broader campaign.
Duterte has been in the ICC's detention facility in The Hague since his arrest in Manila in March 2025.
If the charges are confirmed, the case will be transferred to a Trial Chamber for the subsequent phase of proceedings.
Meanwhile, the Pre-Trial Chamber of the ICC has authorized 500 new applicants to participate as victims in the case against Duterte, bringing the total number of participating victims to over 539.
In a decision issued Friday, Feb. 13, the judges admitted the applicants after determining they "clearly qualify as victims" in relation to the charges outlined by the Office of the Prosecutor.
The applications, transmitted by the ICC Registry on Feb. 9, 2026, were received within the initial deadline and cover 500 individuals.
The chamber’s Victims Participation and Reparations Section (VPRS) assessed the 227 applications — which often represent multiple individuals — and placed them in "Group A," meaning they met the criteria for participation.
"The chamber, not having identified any clear, material error in this VPRS' assessment, and recalling its flexible approach with regard to any minor discrepancies within victim applications, concurs with the VPRS' assessment and decides to authorize the 500 Group A applicants to participate as victims in the present proceedings," the ruling stated.
The decision follows a prior ruling on Jan. 26, 2026, in which the Chamber admitted 39 victims (29 from Group A and 10 from Group C) and established a system of common legal representation.
The judges clarified Friday that the appointed common legal representatives — lawyers Joel Butuyan, Gilbert Andres, and a counsel from the Office of Public Counsel for Victims — will also represent the newly admitted 500 victims.
The participation of victims is a key feature of ICC proceedings, allowing those harmed by alleged crimes to present their views and concerns during the trial process.
Justice served
Mamamayang Liberal Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima said that "justice has been served" over the declaration of the ICC that Dela Rosa and Go and former officials of the administration of former president Duterte were named as "co-conspirators" in the war on drugs.
"In laying down the charges against Duterte, the ICC prosecutor also just made the world smaller for his co-perpetrators by naming them," de Lima said in a post on X.
She also said many of them could go into hiding to join Dela Rosa, who has been absent from the Senate for more than two months.
"No matter, justice will always catch up with them. Justice will be served," de Lima said.
Drug war victims
Families of the victims of the war on drugs welcomed the ICC’s authorization for the participation of 500 more applicants as victims.
In a statement, Rise Up for Life and for Rights, which is an alliance that responds to the upsurge in drug-related killings because of the controversial war on drugs, also welcomed the release of a public, less-redacted document that contains the charges that named Duterte’s co-perpetrators in the commission of crimes against humanity, among them Go and Bato Dela Rosa and former police chiefs Albayalde and the late Cascolan.
They also condemned the disqualification request of the former chief executive’s ICC lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, against the legal counsel of the victims, Joel Butuyan, Gilbert Andres and Nicolene Arcaina.
The alliance said Kaufman’s position “is an attempt to obstruct the ICC proceedings.”
“Duterte and his lawyers have exhausted all the legal actions they could think of to derail our fight for justice. With the confirmation of charges hearing to begin on Feb. 23, their desperation grows,” Sheerah Escudero, sister of drug war victim Ephraim, said.
“Fortunately for us, the ICC so far has denied Duterte’s appeals. Duterte and his lawyers are clearly frustrated because their tactics are not working,” she added.
The alliance also hopes that the confirmation of charges hearing against Duterte will proceed as scheduled despite Kaufman’s move.
“Duterte must be held accountable for crimes against humanity. We will continue to fight for justice for our loved ones until Duterte is found guilty,” said Dahlia Cuartero, who is the mother of another drug war victim, Jesus Cuartero III.
“My son was maligned as a drug user and criminal. I and other families have been called many names as we fight for justice. Today, we have seen and read the names of the real culprits — they who have blood on their hands for implementing a deadly policy. The world ought to know who they are,” she added.
According to the alliance, the latest developments from the ICC boost the morale of the drug war victims’ families.
“We thank the ICC for including more victims to participate in the proceedings. For us, this is a big step in our long and painful fight for justice,” said Jane Lee, who is the widow of drug war victim Michael Lee.
Apart from the court’s official website, ICC Assistant to Counsel Kristina Conti also published on her Facebook page the list containing the names of Duterte’s co-perpetrators in his controversial drug war.
“We've seen the DCC before — it was filed in July 2025 but only made public in September — but this is the first time significant details have been disclosed,” Conti said on Saturday via Facebook.
“This shows that the plan was crafted not only to ensure implementation, but to ensure impunity. The involvement of those in the investigating units, who should have acted as the killings happened, is material to the plan. This also emphasizes that the ‘war on drugs’ began in Davao,” she added.
The charges are going to be read during the confirmation of charges hearing on Feb. 23 at the ICC.
Go on Friday denied allegations contained in a redacted document issued by ICC, asserting that the accusations naming him as an alleged co-perpetrator are “entirely unfounded, one-sided, and unfair.”
In a statement dated Feb. 14, Go said he was recently made aware of the allegations referenced in the redacted “Document Containing the Charges” released on Feb. 13 by the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor.
The document identifies him as an alleged co-perpetrator in connection with charges under preliminary examination by the tribunal.
“I dispute these allegations, which are entirely unfounded, one-sided, unfair, and bear no relation to the reality of my roles and responsibilities,” Go said.
Go outlined his previous government posts, noting that he served as special assistant to the president from June 2016 to October 2018 and as executive assistant to the mayor of Davao City from 1998 to 2016.
During much of that period, he worked closely with former president Rodrigo Duterte, who previously served as mayor of Davao City before assuming the presidency in 2016.
The senator emphasized that he had “no involvement in, knowledge of, or authority over” the matters referenced in the ICC document.
He also refuted claims that he headed the Presidential Management Staff during the relevant period.
"It is inaccurate to claim that I was chief of the Presidential Management Staff then, since at no point in time did that responsibility fall under my jurisdiction," Go said.