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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider DOJ to serve formal letter, not arrest warrant, to Jimmy Bondoc on whereabouts of his client Bato

DOJ to serve formal letter, not arrest warrant, to Jimmy Bondoc on whereabouts of his client Bato

Published May 26, 2026 10:09 am
DOJ Secretary Fredderick Vida and lawyer Jimmy Bondoc
DOJ Secretary Fredderick Vida and lawyer Jimmy Bondoc
Still reeling from the social media backlash of that interview with journalist Ces Drilon, lawyer Jimmy Bondoc will have more explaining to do anew after the Department of Justice (DOJ) said it will ask him to provide information on the whereabouts of his client, Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa.
In that viral interview, Bondoc basically said that arrest warrants can be served or coursed through the lawyer/s, who in turn, can inform their clients about the existence of the order from the court.
Such an argument appeared to have drawn the interest of the DOJ Panel of Prosecutors.
But instead of the arrest warrant for Dela Rosa, DOJ Secretary Fredderick Vida said they will send a formal letter to Bondoc to ask him to cooperate in the efforts to locate his fugitive client.
“I have directed the issuance of a formal letter request asking him to provide the department (DOJ) with any information in his possession or available to him regarding the whereabouts or information leading to the location of Senator Dela Rosa,” said Vida.
“This is an opportunity for Attorney Bondoc to cooperate with the legal processes and assist law enforcement authorities in the proper service of the ICC warrant,” he added.
Dela Rosa is now in the second level of the hide-and-seek game with law enforcement agencies—the first was the six-month hiding before his unexpected public appearance to topple Senate president Vicente Sotto III on May 11.
The question, however, is whether or not Bondoc can use the lawyer-client privilege in rejecting the DOJ request for cooperation.
Bad news for him, Vida categorically said that such a rule will not excuse Bondoc from any liability.
“My position is that the client-lawyer privilege does not excuse him being an officer of the court and being a citizen of the Republic of the Philippines covered by the law,” said Vida.
And it does not also excuse Bondoc, according to Vida, from cooperating and from possibly committing crimes on the aspect of violating the law on concealing offenders of the law, misleading authorities and delaying legal processes.
The DOJ Panel of Prosecutors are currently investigating all the circumstances relating to the arrival and “escape” of Dela Rosa from the Senate protective custody to ferret out the truth and establish accountability.

Related Tags

Bato dela Rosa DOJ Fredderick Vida ICC arrest warrant Jimmy Bondoc
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