Who are Rodrigo Duterte’s alleged co-perpetrators and where are they now?

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have identified eight individuals as co-perpetrators of former President Rodrigo Duterte in the case involving the alleged abuses in his war on drugs.

However, they are yet to be considered as part of the accused. 

“Hindi pa po sila akusado. Siguro ang termino na pamilyar sa atin ay ‘persons of interest.' Ang investigation kasi ay bukas pa rin patungkol sa nangyayari sa Pilipinas. Hiwalay na insidente o schedule yung kaso ni Duterte. Hiwalay na proseso ang lalakad, hiwalay na quantum of evidence ang ihaharap,” said ICC Assistant to Counsel Atty. Kristina Conti.

(They are still not part of the accused. I guess the term familiar to us would be ‘persons of interest.' The investigation remains open pertaining to what is going on in the Philippines. Duterte’s case is a separate incident or schedule. It will be a separate process, and a separate quantum of evidence will be presented.)

A "24 Oras" report by Sandra Aguinaldo has compiled a comprehensive update on where each co-perpetrator is as of April 2026.

Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa

Dela Rosa was the first to be named as Duterte’s co-perpetrator.

He was the head of the Davao City Police chief during Duterte’s term as mayor and was promoted to Philippine National Police chief when Duterte assumed the presidency in 2016. 

Dela Rosa advocated for Oplan Tokhang, which is a police knock-and-plead strategy aimed at convincing drug personalities to stop using illegal drugs. It has long been the subject of controversy, with Duterte critics linking it to the killing of drug suspects in police operations.

Dela Rosa is currently on his second term as senator, but he has been absent from the Senate since November 2025 following reports of an alleged ICC warrant for his arrest. 

Christopher "Bong" Go

Go was the second co-perpetrator to be named by the ICC prosecutors.

He served as Duterte’s personal aide and special assistant during his time as Davao mayor and later served as the special assistant to the president during Duterte’s presidency.

Go was elected senator in 2019. He won reelection in 2025 and remains present in Senate plenary sessions in the 20th Congress.

Vicente Danao

Also one of the former Davao City Police Chiefs during Duterte’s term as mayor, Vicente Danao was named a co-perpetrator for allegedly helping implement the drug war.

Danao also served as the Manila Police chief and PNP officer-in-charge while Duterte was president.

He retired from the police service in August 2023.

Camilo Casolan

Cascolan served as the Davao Police’s finance chief when Duterte was mayor. He was later named chief of the PNP Directorate for Operations, head of the National Capital Region Police Office, and PNP chief during Duterte’s presidency.

Cascolan was named co-perpetrator for allegedly being the first to provide rewards for each kill under the drug war.

He was also allegedly the mind behind Oplan Double Barrel.

Cascolan died in 2023.

Dante Gierran

Gierran served as the head of National Bureau of Investigation Davao Region during Duterte’s term as mayor and the NBI director during Duterte’s presidency.

Vitaliano Aguirre II

Aguirre defended Duterte against claims linking him to the Davao Death Squad (DDS) during his time as mayor. He served as justice secretary for almost two years and commissioner at the National Police Commission for more than one year during Duterte’s presidency.

He returned to private practice after leaving the government. 

Oscar Albayalde

Albayalde was the NCR Police Office director from 2016 to 2018 before replacing Dela Rosa as PNP chief.

Isidro Lapeña

Lapeña was the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief from 2016 to 2017. He also served at the Bureau of Customs and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA). 

Duterte and his alleged co-perpetrators were accused of implementing a “common plan” to neutralize criminals nationwide by killing them.

"Yung number 1,2,3 and so forth yan ang pinaka responsable according to degree of participation. Kung meron mang iisyuhan [ng warrant], talagang si Bato Dela Rosa, at may basehan para kabahan talaga siya,” Conti said.

(The number 1,2,3 and so forth are the most responsible according to degree of participation. If someone were to be issued [a warrant], that would really be Bato Dela Rosa, and there's really a basis for him to be nervous.)

Dela Rosa’s camp has yet to respond to the accusations, while Aguirre has denied that he was among those who implemented the “common plan.”

He also plans to file a petition with the Supreme Court to protect his rights.

“Dapat yan dumaan sa domestic and local courts and may approval ng courts, so I believe that we could not be brought to the ICC on the basis of the warrant of arrest,” Aguirre said.

(That should pass through the domestic, local courts and have the approval from these courts, so I believe that we could not be brought to the ICC on the basis of the warrant of arrest.)

Go, meanwhile, took to social media to pray for Duterte’s health amid the ICC's confirmation of the charges of crimes against humanity against the former president.

“Sa gitna ng malungkot na balita, justice will prevail. Para sa mga haharapin pa niyang pagsubok, ipagpatuloy po natin ang pagdadasal para sa kaligtasan at kalusugan ni Tatay Digong,” he said.

(Amid the sad news, justice will prevail. In light of the obstacles that he will continue to face, let us continue to pray for the safety and health of Tatay Digong.)

In February, Cascolan’s wife expressed disbelief after her late husband was included in the co-perpetrators' list. 

“How I wish [my husband] were here so he could give you a passionate lecture on Oplan Tokhang, Double Barrel, and HVT [High Value Target],” Amelia Cascolan said. — Jiselle Anne Casucian/VBL, GMA News