Alan Peter Cayetano files answer to obstruction of justice complaint

Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano has filed his answer on the obstruction of justice complaint lodged against him over the departure of Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa from the Senate premises in May, the Office of the Ombudsman said Thursday.

“The Office of the Ombudsman has received the counter affidavit submitted by Senator Alan Peter Cayetano. Counsel for Sen. Cayetano presented the counter affidavit yesterday, July 15, 2026,” the Ombudsman said.

“This counter affidavit is in response to the ongoing preliminary investigation into the complaint of obstruction of justice filed by members of civil society,” the Ombudsman added, referring to opposition coalition Tindig Pilipinas and other allied groups.

The complainants said the respondents, who also included Senator Robin Padilla and then-Acting Senate Sgt. at Arms Mao Aplasca, granted protective custody to Dela Rosa to prevent the senator from being arrested on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over alleged crimes against humanity due to drug war deaths during his term as police chief.

Dela Rosa was placed under the protective custody of the Senate when Cayetano was elected Senate President on May 11.

This protective custody, the complainants said, was fake to begin with because it was followed by Aplasca firing multiple warning shots at National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents that sent Senate personnel, media practitioners, and other civilians inside the Senate premises into panic and chaos.

After the shooting incident on May 13, it was later learned that Senators Robin Padilla and Dela Rosa left the Senate premises together.

“The acts complained of point to one purpose: to prevent, delay, or frustrate the apprehension of Dela Rosa and the investigation of his escape. From the grant of "protective custody," to the security response, to his removal from the Senate premises, and finally to the resistance to the production of CCTV evidence, the acts form a single chain directed at obstructing the administration of justice,” the complainants said.

“These circumstances, coupled with the evidence on record, establish prima facie evidence with reasonable certainty of conviction to indict Respondents for knowingly and willfully obstructing, impeding, frustrating, or delaying the apprehension of Dela Rosa and the investigation of the events surrounding his escape,” the complainants added.

Padilla previously admitted in an interview that Dela Rosa "asked" to hitch a ride with him out of the Senate building after the shooting incident. He also admitted that he owns the vehicle that was seen leaving the Senate after the shooting incident, where Dela Rosa was believed to be its passenger. — RSJ, GMA News