ISTANBUL

The Filipino envoy who handed former President Rodrigo Duterte over to the International Criminal Court (ICC) has been detained by the Senate of the Philippines on contempt charges, local media reported Tuesday.

Markus Lacanilao, the special envoy for transnational crime, voluntarily surrendered to the Senate on Monday, digital daily Rappler reported.

His arrest came after Senator Imee Marcos, the elder sister of President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr., cited Lacanilao in contempt during a Senate hearing on April 10, leading to his brief detention.

However, Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero ordered Lacanilao’s release later the same day, stating that Marcos had not followed the proper procedure in citing him for contempt.

On April 11, the Senate required Lacanilao to explain why he should not be held in contempt.

After his hearing, the contempt order said he “failed to satisfactorily explain, through a clear statement of facts, why his answers during the hearing were not evasive,” and placed him under Senate custody for up to two days.

Lacanilao earlier said he boarded the flight to The Hague because he was the only official who had his passport with him the night of Duterte’s arrest. He also marked the “do not know” box on an ICC form asking for details of Duterte’s appearance before a national judicial authority, according to Rappler.

Duterte was arrested in Manila on March 11 under an ICC warrant and was flown to The Hague the same day.

He is blamed for thousands of deaths during his so-called war on drugs between 2016 and 2022.