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Duterte is still under ICC custody. On the same day the false claim was posted, March 14, he appeared for the pre-trial through video link from the Scheveningen prison where he is detained.
Claim: Former president Rodrigo Duterte has returned home to Davao City following his arrest and transfer to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Netherlands.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: The video was posted on March 14, three days after Duterte was arrested and placed under ICC custody in The Hague, Netherlands, to face charges of crimes against humanity related to drug war killings.
One Facebook reel falsely claims that Duterte has returned to Davao. The text on the video says, “Update kay Tatay Digong. Nakauwi na siya kagabi dito sa Davao. Ang saya niya at ang saya ng mga tao. Thanks God.”
(Update on Tatay Digong. He returned yesterday night here in Davao. He’s so happy and people are so happy. Thanks God.)
The video has already received 5.5 million views, 341,000 reactions, 18,600 comments, and 48,000 shares as of writing.
A TikTok video also used a newscast of One Balita Pilipinas to falsely claim that Duterte is back in Davao. It has gathered 1.3 million views, 69,400 likes, 1,072 comments, and 2,891 shares.
As of writing, several social media users continue to post comments celebrating Duterte’s supposed return to the Philippines.
The facts: Duterte is still under ICC custody. On March 14, the same day the false claim was posted, the former president appeared before the ICC for the first time through a video link from the nearby Scheveningen prison where he is now detained.
On March 13, the ICC also clarified that the former president “is under ICC custody at the ICC detention centre in Scheveningen” following a medical check-up. This came after former executive secretary Salvador Medialdea told reporters that his client was not inside the ICC detention facility.
Duterte arrived in the Netherlands on Wednesday, March 12, via a chartered plane from Manila. (READ: Inside story: Rodrigo Duterte’s ICC arrest)
Out of context videos: The clip of Duterte used in the misleading Facebook reel was posted on March 1, 2025, on TikTok — several days before Duterte’s arrest. Meanwhile, the newscast clip featured in the other misleading video came from a One PH report about Duterte’s Davao homecoming in July 2022 after his term as president ended.
Chances of release: Duterte will remain in the ICC detention center for at least six months until the next hearing for the confirmation of charges, which will be held on September 23, 2025.
Under the Rome Statute, the 79-year-old Duterte can apply for an interim release pending trial and may cite his health in his application. The ICC, however, has yet to allow the interim release of a suspect charged with crimes against humanity. – Angelee Kaye Abelinde/Rappler.com
Angelee Kaye Abelinde, a campus journalist from Naga City, is a second-year Journalism student of Bicol University and the current copy editor of The Bicol Universitarian. She is a graduate of the Aries Rufo Journalism Fellow of Rappler for 2024.
Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.
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