International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutors have filed three counts of murder as crimes against humanity against former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte, detailing his alleged involvement in a network of killings from his years as Davao City mayor through his presidency.

In a 15-page filing dated July 4 but made public on Monday, September 22, ICC Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang said Duterte was “criminally liable” as an indirect co-perpetrator in at least 49 incidents of murder and attempted murder.

“The Prosecution charges the murders and attempted murders below, although the actual scale of victimization during the charged period was significantly greater, as reflected in the widespread nature of the attack,” the filing stated.

The three counts are:

• Count 1: Murder of 19 victims in nine incidents in Davao City from 2013 to 2016, “as an indirect co-perpetrator, and/or by ordering and/or inducing, and/or aiding and abetting.”

• Count 2: Murder of 14 “high-value targets” in five incidents nationwide from 2016 to 2017 during Duterte’s presidency.

• Count 3: Murder and attempted murder of 45 victims in barangay “clearance operations” from 2016 to 2018, of which 43 were killed.

“At least between 1 November 2011 and 16 March 2019, Duterte and his co-perpetrators shared a common plan or agreement to ‘neutralize’ alleged criminals in the Philippines … through violent crimes including murder,” the prosecutors wrote, referring to the scheme as the “Common Plan.”

The charge sheet recounted Duterte’s use of the Davao Death Squad (DDS) to kill alleged criminals while mayor, saying he stood at the “top of the structure of power” that carried out the plan.

“During Duterte’s presidential campaign and the transition period after he was elected, the co-perpetrators agreed to expand the Common Plan … across the Philippines,” it added.

According to prosecutors, Duterte and his associates created a “National Network” of state actors — including police, PDEA agents, Bureau of Corrections personnel, and non-police hitmen — to replicate the DDS nationwide.

“Some of the victims were listed in the ‘PRRD List,’ with targets categorized by tier according to their assigned ‘value’ … Police who killed a target on the list could access a covert reward system … ranging from 50,000 to one million pesos depending on the level of the target,” the ICC document said.

Human rights groups have long estimated the death toll from Duterte’s war on drugs to be far higher than official figures. Government data record at least 6,252 deaths in police operations between July 1, 2016, and May 31, 2022, but watchdogs place the total, including vigilante-style killings, at 27,000 to 30,000.

“The attack included thousands of killings, which were perpetrated consistently throughout the charged period,” the prosecutors alleged.

Duterte was arrested in Manila on March 11 and flown to the Netherlands, where he has since been held at the ICC detention unit in Scheveningen Prison. He appeared via video link at his initial hearing “dazed and frail, barely speaking,” according to reports.

A confirmation of charges hearing originally set for September 23 was postponed after Duterte’s lawyer Nicholas Kaufman argued that the former president was “not fit to stand trial” due to “cognitive impairment in multiple domains.”

Kaufman on September 9 described Duterte’s health as “progressively deteriorating” and urged the court to suspend proceedings indefinitely.

Victims’ counsel Kristina Conti dismissed the move as “a desperate, time-worn, and calculated ploy to paint himself (Duterte) aggrieved.”

Despite his arrest, Duterte remains popular among his support base, particularly in his hometown Davao City and among overseas Filipinos. He served as mayor of Davao City for a total of 22 years before becoming president from 2016 to 2022.