A Facebook page posted a graphic card claiming that former president Rodrigo Duterte will be released from the International Criminal Court detention, citing the results of a medical examination supposedly conducted by a certain “ICC chief medical officer.” This is fake.
While Duterte’s counsel Nicholas Kaufman confirmed in a Dec. 6 message to local media organizations that “the defense has been provided with the reports of the court-appointed panel of experts,” he noted that the contents of the medical reports remain “confidential.”
The bogus quote card was published on Dec. 3, two days before the Dec. 5 deadline set by the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I for the panel of experts to complete its assessment of Duterte’s medical condition. The post claimed that Dr. Steven Wolfe, said to be ICC’s chief medical officer, supposedly stated:
“After examining former President Rodrigo Duterte, I confirm that he is experiencing advanced symptoms of Ligma Degenerative Syndrome (LDS), a condition causing cardiovascular instability, limited mobility, and rapid stress-related deterioration.
Given his age and the progression of LDS, continued ICC detention poses serious medical risks and will likely worsen his condition. He requires a stable, familiar environment that cannot be provided within the facility.
For humanitarian and medical reasons, I strongly recommend his immediate release. It would be in his best interest to spend Christmas in Davao with his family, where emotional support and reduced stress can help stabilize his health.”
As of Dec. 8, the ICC has not released on its website a publicly available copy of the medical reports.
The ICC Pre-Trial Chamber earlier formed a multidisciplinary panel composed of experts in forensic psychiatry, neuropsychology and geriatric and behavioural psychology to assess Duterte’s fitness to stand trial. The court finalized the composition of the panel on Nov. 14, after two previously appointed experts were replaced.
Contrary to the claims made by the FB page that a certain “ICC chief medical officer” examined Duterte’s condition, the court’s registry previously said the medical officer of the ICC detention center “does not possess the requisite expertise or judicial knowledge” to provide an assessment regarding a detained person’s fitness to stand trial.
Red flags in the fake graphic
“Steven Wolfe,” the doctor identified in the fabricated graphic, is actually the real name of adult film performer Johnny Sins. VERA Files has previously debunked a similar fake quote card in which Sins supposedly defended Duterte. (READ: FACT CHECK: Annalise Keating, Elle Woods, other fictional characters DID NOT defend Duterte vs ICC)
A reverse image search showed that the photo of Sins used in the fraudulent quote card appears to have been taken from a video he uploaded on his TikTok account on May 12, 2023, where he was dressed in a doctor’s outfit.
Another red flag is the condition allegedly experienced by Duterte called “Ligma Degenerative Syndrome.” It seems to be based on the so-called “ligma,” a fictitious “virus” that originated from an internet hoax in 2018. Lead Stories, a United States-based fact-checking website and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network, has debunked claims related to the fictional health disease in 2021 and 2022.
The fake graphic with untrue claims surfaced five days after the ICC Appeals Chamber rejected Duterte’s appeal for interim release.
Posted by FB page Duterte Supporter Daily News (created on March 24, 2025), the post carrying the bogus quote card has so far garnered over 27,000 reactions, 4,300 comments and 12,000 shares. While the page labeled itself as satirical, it did not indicate that the graphic was intended for satire, leading some netizens to believe the false claims.
