Sen. Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa "escaped" the Philippine Senate before dawn after taking shelter there under Senate protective custody while facing an International Criminal Court arrest warrant, Reuters reported on May 14. Separately, the Senate president, newly installed on May 11, said the chamber will convene as an impeachment court on May 18 to set procedures for Vice President Sara Duterte's trial.

Dela Rosa's escape followed gunfire on the Senate premises on May 13, which police are investigating as possibly staged to help him slip out. He is wanted by the ICC for alleged crimes against humanity committed as part of his role in former President Rodrigo Duterte's 2016-18 drug war. The impeachment court date was set after the House of Representatives transmitted Sara Duterte's impeachment case to the Senate, underscoring that the same chamber that sheltered Dela Rosa will oversee her trial.