FACT CHECK: No insider info on ICC decision, Conti says; photo is AI-generated

Claim: Lawyer Kristina Conti, International Criminal Court (ICC)-accredited assistant to counsel, has insider information on the judges’ decisions in former president Rodrigo Duterte’s case, and she has “significant influence” in the international tribunal’s ruling.

Rating: FALSE 

Why we fact-checked this: The post bearing the claim has already received 1,000 reactions, 582 comments, and 37 shares as of writing. It was posted on March 3, days after the conclusion of the pre-trial hearing for Duterte’s crimes against humanity case. 

The post features photos of ICC judges Iulia Motoc, Reine Adélaïde Sophie Alapini-Gansou, and María del Socorro Flores Liera, along with Duterte’s defense counsel, Nicholas Kaufman, and Conti, who is shown holding a document with the word “Guilty” stamped on it.

The text on the photo says, “Yare! Binasahan na?! Atty. Conti nangulat!”

(Busted! It has been read?! Atty. Conti surprised everyone!) 

The post’s caption implies that Conti holds significant influence over the ICC’s decision: “Shocking: Is Atty. Conti ‘holding’ a crucial decision? What’s the truth amidst the public outrage? Information circulating online suggests that Atty. Conti is playing a key role in a crucial legal decision, causing a stir in the online community. Many posts claim [she] has a significant influence in the current situation.”

The facts: Conti debunked the claim in a post on March 5, writing, “Mariin ko pong itinatanggi na may advance o insider information ako sa desisyon ng mga judge, o mga filing o submission ng parties labas sa publicly-disclosed information.” 

(I strongly deny that I have any advance or insider information on the judges’ decisions, or the parties’ filings or submissions outside of publicly-disclosed information.)

She also clarified that while she might be knowledgeable about ICC court processes, she does not know how the court will decide on Duterte’s case. 

AI-generated: The photo of Conti holding a supposed guilty verdict from the ICC is AI-generated. AI detection tool Sight Engine flagged the image as 71% likely to be AI-generated. Hive Moderation also flagged the photo with an AI generation probability of 85.6%.

Sight Engine detected a 63% probability of the use of Imagen or Nano Banana on the photo. Imagen is a text-to-image generative AI model developed by Google DeepMind, while Nano Banana is Google’s advanced AI image generation and editing model used in Google Gemini. Hive Moderation also detected, with 92.4% likelihood, that the image was created using Gemini3. 

ICC case: Conti, a human rights lawyer, represents some of the victims of the war on drugs during Duterte’s administration. 

The former president was arrested on March 11, 2025, and has since been detained in an ICC facility in The Hague, Netherlands. Human rights groups reported that over 30,000 victims, including children and accused civilians, have been killed under his administration’s drug war.

His pre-trial hearing was held on February 23, 24, 26, and 27. The judges’ written decision will be delivered within 60 days, where they can either confirm the charges due to sufficient evidence, decline due to insufficient evidence, or adjourn the hearing and request further investigation. 

Prosecutors are confident that the case will move to a trial. In a GMA News article, Conti said, “Ang ating stage ngayon ay confirmation of charges hearing, ang ating hinahanap ay substantial evidence — that there exists. Klaro na nakita natin na may basehan.”

(We are now at the confirmation of charges hearing state, which is seeking substantial evidence — that [it] exists. It is clear that there is a basis for the charges.) 

Previous fact-checks: Rappler has previously fact-checked similar claims about Conti: 

• FACT CHECK: Quote card of Kristina Conti on death penalty is fake
• FACT CHECK: Quote card of Kristina Conti saying there are no drug war witnesses is fake 

– Angelee Kaye Abelinde/Rappler.com 

Angelee Kaye Abelinde is a student journalist based in Naga City, and an alumna of Rappler’s Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship 2024. 

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