MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Friday said it will course the arrest of Sen. Rodante Marcoleta with the Senate leadership once the warrant for his arrest gets released.
“We will be coordinating, if ever this will be done, through the Senate leadership,” PCol. Allan Rae Co, PNP spokesman told reporters in a briefing at Camp Crame.
Co reiterated that the PNP stands ready to execute any lawful order from the court.
On Friday, the Office of the Ombudsman filed plunder charges against Sen. Rodante Marcoleta and his co-accused over his acceptance of a P75 million campaign donation.
The PNP said the arrest will likely follow the template of that of Sen. Jinggoy Estrada was arrested on June 1 over alleged multi-million kickbacks in anomalous flood control projects.
“Of course we follow systems and protocols in our operations so most probably, it will still be the same, generally the same,” Co said.
To recall, tensions flared in the Senate when the PNP arrested Estrada and then-Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano insisted his colleague be arrested outside the chamber. Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, who led the arrest stood firm on the arrest and countered Cayetano that the lawmakers lost the privelege of not being arrested inside the upper house's premises when Sen. Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa was allowed to leave its protection.
In January 2025, former Anakalusugan Rep. Mike Defensor, a certain Aristotle Viray and Joseph Espiritu allegedly donated P30 million, P25 million and P20 million respectively for Marcoleta’s senatorial bid.
Marcoleta explicitly admitted having received P75 million in campaign donations which his "friends" gave him. He said he did not declare it in his Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) or his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) because his donors requested to remain anonymous.