Rodrigo Duterte, who once promised to rid his nation of criminals and narcotics with a brutal campaign, was outwitted and taken into custody just before his 80th birthday.
When the former president flew into Manila from Hong Kong, where he had been mobilizing the Filipino diaspora there to support his candidates for the forthcoming midterm election, he was greeted by Philippine police.
It turned out that the Philippines government already had the much-discussed arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) and quickly proceeded to carry it out.
Mr. Duterte, who appeared weak and was using a stick to walk, was taken to an air force base inside the airport’s boundaries.
