FORMER police officer and vlogger Francis Steve Fontillas was arrested for allegedly inciting to sedition.
The arrest stems from his criticisms of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s administration regarding the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) said Fontillas was arrested on Monday, June 16, 2025 through an arrest warrant issued by the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 224 for Violation of Article 142 (Inciting to Sedition) of the Revised Penal Code, in relation to Section 6 of Republic Act 10175, the Cybercrime Prevention Act.
Bail was set at P36,000.
The case originated from a criminal complaint against Fontillas for alleged seditious statements posted on Facebook from March 12 to 13.
He reportedly threatened to topple the government, expressing displeasure with the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Marcos administration over Duterte's "wrongful" arrest on the ongoing International Criminal Court (ICC) investigation into alleged crimes against humanity during Duterte's drug war.
The NCRPO stated that Fontillas' viral post caused community unrest.
PNP chief General Nicolas Torre III praised Fontillas' arrest.
"Well, I would like to think na si Fontillas is just a very, very small exception—an aberration to the organization. We have 220,000 people; siya lang naman mag-isa ang gumawa no’n at wala naman iba. So, I don’t think that he has any following in the PNP, kaya no need to warn or whatever i-remind ang ating mga tauhan. Alam na natin ’yan—professional ang PNP,” Torre said. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)