East Timor deported Arnolfo Teves Jr., a former Filipino congressman, to the Philippines on Thursday, May 29, 2025, ending a standoff of more than two years over his alleged role in the killing of a provincial governor.
Immigration authorities arrested Teves in Dili on Wednesday, then handed him to police who escorted him in handcuffs onto a Philippine air force plane that left Thursday afternoon. According to the East Timor government’s statement, he was deported for staying without a visa and because Manila had cancelled his passport.
Teves is wanted in the Philippines in connection with the March 2023 killing of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo and several other people, in an attack that also left at least 17 wounded. He has denied involvement, and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who had the governor’s backing, called the killings “purely political.”
The decision carries a wider regional signal. East Timor said his prolonged stay posed a “disruptive factor in bilateral relations” and warned that being seen as a refuge for people fleeing international justice would undermine its borders. It pointed to its scheduled accession to ASEAN in October 2025 as a reason to cooperate with partners on rule of law. The Philippine Department of Justice said it had put together a group of justice and immigration officials to bring him home.
For Southeast Asia, the takeaway is plain: with the region’s newest country preparing to join ASEAN, Dili is signalling that it will not be a waiting room for suspects wanted by its neighbours.
Sources
- East Timor Deports Suspected Murderer Teves
- East Timor deports an ex-Filipino congressman accused of masterminding a governor’s murder
