Timeline: Dela Rosa's May 13 standoff, Senate lockdown and gunfire

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MANILA, Philippines — The Senate was placed under lockdown Wednesday night, May 13, after Sen. Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa claimed his arrest was imminent following the Supreme Court's interim refusal to immediately stop enforcement of the International Criminal Court warrant against him.

As tensions escalated, security forces sealed parts of the Senate complex, Marines were deployed to augment the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms and armed personnel were seen taking positions inside the building. Gunshots later rang out, sending journalists and staff scrambling for cover.

No casualties were reported, but major questions remained unresolved, including what prompted the gunfire, who ordered the lockdown and how Dela Rosa later slipped out of the Senate complex around 2:30 a.m.

The timeline below reconstructs the events based on on-ground reporting, official statements and accounts from independently verified sources.

Timeline of the Senate lockdown and gunfire incident as Dela Rosa faced arrest

May 13

BEFORE 3:51 p.m., MAY 13

Tensions had already been building at the Senate after an earlier floor exchange involving Sens. Robin Padilla and Francis Pangilinan.

National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag told dzMM that the NBI had been told not to implement the arrest of Dela Rosa while waiting for the Supreme Court’s action on his plea for a temporary restraining order.

Former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV, who filed the ICC complaint against Dela Rosa and detained former president Rodrigo Duterte, also said there was no arresting team in the Senate.

3:51 p.m.

Dela Rosa leaves the Senate plenary hall.

4:20 P.M. onward

The first part of the "chaos" began when Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano and Dela Rosa exited through the backdoor of the Senate.

They were followed by Dela Rosa’s lawyers, Israelito Torreon and Jimmy Bondoc.

Reporters asked the lawyers what was happening, but received no response.

5:00 p.m. onward, approx.

Dela Rosa goes live on Facebook, claiming he is going to be arrested by the NBI after the session.

At the same time, based on media reports outside the Senate, Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Mao Aplasca tells reporters NBI personnel were outside the GSIS building, which the Senate is renting.

Note: Matibag later confirms at a Palace briefing on May 14 that NBI personnel were present at GSIS upon the request of GSIS President Wick Veloso, but not inside the Senate premises. Matibag emphasizes that the NBI had orders from Justice Secretary Fredderick Vida not to arrest Dela Rosa.

5:23 p.m.

Dela Rosa posts a video on his Facebook page asking supporters to hold a vigil outside the Senate, saying his arrest was "imminent."

6:14 p.m. onward

The Supreme Court issues its resolution on Dela Rosa’s plea for judicial protection at around 6:14 p.m. The court would not take "any interim or urgent measures" just yet on the senator's petition for a temporary restraining order against the arrest warrant of the International Criminal Court.

The court directs  Dela Rosa to file his reply within 72 hours.

7:05 p.m. approx.

Aplasca, the Senate sergeant-at-arms, arrives on the second floor of the Senate after he was at GSIS.

He says "they are gonna arrest somebody," but does not say who.

Reporters ask Aplasca who would be arrested.

Aplasca later announces that there would be a lockdown in the Senate.

He also says the Articles of Impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte were expected to arrive.

He does not state the reason for the lockdown.

7:08 p.m.

Aplasca announces a "total lockdown" in the Senate.

7:15 p.m. onward, approx.

While reporters are waiting without word from Aplasca or anyone in the Senate, Dela Rosa, Padilla and other lawmakers are seen rushing to the Senate elevators.

Reporters try to follow them, but do not see them on the ground floor.

7:30 p.m, approx

Men in fatigues arrive in full battle gear.

OSAA personnel say they are the OSAA’s quick-response team.

At the same time, the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms has already implemented the lockdown, with OSAA personnel closing the Senate’s doors with rolling shutters.

Note: After the shooting incident, the Armed Forces of the Philippines confirms that the men in fatigues were Marines deployed to augment the OSAA as part of routine security detail. The shots fired did not come from the troops, the military chief says.

Between 7:08 p.m. and 7:51 p.m.

Eyewitnesses and some media personnel say they saw individuals drilling a hole from the other side of the building connected to the Senate, which was the GSIS side.

Note: Matibag, in the dzMM interview, says there was indeed activity on the GSIS side of the compound, but denies that it was the NBI. At a Palace press conference on May 14, Matibag says the individuals drilling on the GSIS side of the compound were not wearing any NBI gear.

7:40 p.m.

Aplasca next arrives on the second floor of the Senate building in front of reporters. He is seen wearing body armor, along with OSAA personnel.

Aplasca says a word to the Marines, OSAA personnel and several uniformed policemen, who are all armed.

They cock their guns afterward.

Senate security, with Marines, moves in a straight line.

Aplasca leads the line, followed by Marines, OSAA personnel and policemen carrying handguns.

They proceed to the hall, where they lean against the wall.

OSAA personnel urge the media not to follow and try to push media personnel away from the police.

7:51 p.m.

Gunshots are heard inside the Senate building.

A first shot is heard, followed by multiple shots.

Media personnel scramble.

Some media personnel are left inside, while others run outside the Senate building and force open the rolling shutters.

8 p.m. onward, approx.

Several officials arrive after the gunshot incident.

Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla is the first official on-ground. He says he arrived to secure the senators, not to arrest Dela Rosa.

A member of the media shouts a question about the difference between "securing" Dela Rosa and arresting him, but Remulla does not respond.

He is followed by PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr., who does not speak to reporters.

8:01 p.m.

Cayetano and other majority senators post video updates claiming they were the target of the gunshots and that the Senate was "under attack," even if there was still no confirmation of the source of the gunfire.

At the same time, according to the on-ground account, senators are on livestream.

Cayetano claims that NBI personnel posing as media entered the Senate building.

8:10 p.m, approx.

Senate Secretary Mark Mendoza tells journalists who remain inside the building that the shots heard were warning shots fired to “secure the area,” but says officials could not yet assess whether anyone had been hurt because the area was dark.

Mendoza also says Senate personnel believed unidentified individuals may have drawn fire to divert attention after noticing Senate personnel nearby. He says the individuals were “perceived NBI,” but not confirmed to be NBI personnel.

“Noong nakita sila ng team namin, na-alerto sila. So siguro noong nakita nila na nandoon yung team namin naka-abang, to divert the attention, nag-draw ng fire... They are perceived NBI. Hindi namin alam,” Mendoza says.

8:00 p.m. onward

The Articles of Impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte arrive in the Senate. There are several copies in stacks, wheeled in on a cart.

The arrival of the articles is followed by white vehicles, one of which is carrying House Secretary General Cheloy Garafil.

Personnel push the Articles of Impeachment inside the Senate building, then immediately run outside.

8:44 p.m.

NBI Director Melvin Matibag says NBI agents were not in the Senate building, as agreed upon with Cayetano.

Matibag also denies that NBI agents were the source of the gunfire.

9:45 p.m.

Cayetano, Remulla and several senators exit the Senate building to face the media.

Remulla repeatedly stresses that he arrived to secure the senators, following orders from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Cayetano and Remulla say Dela Rosa chose to stay inside his office.

Remulla assures the media that they are there to "protect" Dela Rosa.

9:57 p.m.

Remulla and Cayetano hold a press conference outside the Senate. Behind them are members of the new majority bloc, aligned with President Rodrigo Duterte, Vice President Duterte and Dela Rosa, who on Monday ousted Tito Sotto as Senate president to install Cayetano.

They say the minority senators were holding a caucus and were together in one room.

Remulla says the Senate's Sergeant-at-Arms fired the first shot as a "warning shot," which was then followed by unidentified individuals firing shots indiscriminately in the air.

They say there were no casualties from the earlier incident.

According to the on-ground account, there were no casualties among Senate security, Marines and the media.

10:22 p.m.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. releases a video saying government agents were not behind the shooting incident.

He orders a probe.

Past 11 p.m.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines confirms that the men in fatigues seen inside the Senate were Marines deployed to augment the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms.

The clarification comes hours after armed men in camouflage and full battle gear were seen inside the Senate during the lockdown and before gunshots were heard in the building.

Around 2:30 a.m., May 14

Based on reports from the Senate secretariat, citing a senator, Dela Rosa is able to slip out of the Senate premises at around 2:30 a.m. Thursday, May 14.

The reported departure comes hours after Dela Rosa said his arrest was "imminent," the Senate went into lockdown, gunshots were fired inside the building and officials said he had chosen to stay in his office.

MAY 14, statements

Police spokesman Brigadier-General Randulf Tuano tells reporters they detained a person in connection with gunfire the previous night. "He (suspect) was arrested at the area of the incident, at the second floor of the senate building," Tuano says.

Police also said they seized live ammunition from the man, who was being tested for gunshot residue.

PNP chief Nartatez says at a Palace press briefing that the shots fired were "not fewer than 30."

Nartatez says most of the shots came from Senate security.

Palace Press Secretary Claire Castro, reading from a report, says Aplasca asked an individual wearing an NBI uniform for identification. Afterward, Aplasca fired the first shot.

Matibag, in the same Palace press conference, says the individuals drilling on the GSIS side of the compound were not wearing any NBI gear.

What we don't know

The sequence suggests that the Senate incident escalated after Dela Rosa publicly claimed his arrest was imminent, the Supreme Court declined to issue urgent interim relief, and the Senate went into lockdown.

While investigations have been launched, and witnesses are interrogated, a few glaring gaps in the information from on-ground reports and supporting statements are present.

1. Who ordered the lockdown, and why? Aplasca announced the lockdown, but the reports do not establish who ordered it, what threat assessment justified it, or whether it was triggered by the rumored arrest, the NBI presence at GSIS, the alleged drilling, the expected arrival of the impeachment articles or a combination of these.

2. What exactly was Senate security responding to? Were the armed security personnel—some of whom were even wearing bulletproof vests—acting on a real breach, a perceived threat, conflicting information or a rumor-driven security response that esclated into armed confrontation.

2. Who was the person allegedly wearing an NBI uniform? The Palace account, as read by Castro, says Aplasca asked an individual wearing an NBI uniform for identification before firing the first shot.

3. Why did Aplasca say "they are gonna arrest somebody"? Aplasca made this remark after being at GSIS, but he did not identify who would be arrested. This remains unresolved because Matibag said the NBI had orders not to arrest Dela Rosa.

4. How did the expected arrival of the Articles of Impeachment factor into the lockdown? The articles arrived at little past 8 p.m., after the gunfire. Whether the expected arrival of the documents influenced the lockdown is unclear. 

5. How exactly did Dela Rosa leave the Senate? Reports from the Senate secretariat, citing a senator, say Dela Rosa slipped out at around 2:30 a.m. on May 14. This is corroborated by comments of his lawyers past 11 p.m. that Dela Rosa was still in the building at the time.

8. What does CCTV show? Several critical claims would likely be clarified by security footage, including Dela Rosa's movements after leaving the plenary, who entered or exited from the GSIS side, the alleged drilling, the armed formation, the first shot, the number and direction of the shots, and the identity of the persons allegedly wearing an NBI uniform.

— with reports from Adrian Parungao, Rosette Adel, Martin Ramos, Cristina Chi, John Marwin Elao and Camille Diola