MANILA, Philippines – Sandro Muhlach disclosed on Tuesday, August 27, that he was allegedly forced to use illegal drugs by GMA independent contractors, Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz, before being sexually assaulted.
The 23-year-old Sparkle artist revealed this at the fifth hearing of the Senate Committee on Information and Mass Media on the complaints of abuse and harassment on Tuesday, wherein he appeared virtually. Cruz, meanwhile, was not present in the hearing as his lawyer relayed that he is confined at St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City due to gastrointestinal bleeding.
Muhlach continued to recount from the previous hearing the incident on how he ended up at the hotel room of Nones and Cruz after the GMA Gala event on July 20.
He said that after being introduced by Nones to a drunk Cruz, Nones made him drink wine, gave him a P500 bill, and took out an unidentified “white substance.”
“May nilagay na white substance sa table ng hotel, pinagbabasag ng hotel room key card. Tapos ayun po tinuruan niya ako gamitin ‘yung white substance. Nauna po silang suminghot ni Dode Cruz. Tapos ako po ‘yung pinasunod nila,” he said.
(Nones put a white substance at the hotel table, then broke it using a room key card. They then taught me how to use the white substance. Nones and Cruz sniffed it first then they made me follow them.)
“Then after ilang minutes po, hinila ako ni Sir Jojo sa kama. Si Dode Cruz, tinanggal po ‘yung polo ko tapos bigla niyang sinuck ‘yung nipples ko, parehas po, super sakit po. Si Sir Jojo, binababa ‘yung pantalon ko, sobrang laswa po,” he added. (Then after several minutes, Nones pulled me to the bed. Cruz removed my polo and sucked both of my nipples. It hurt. Nones then removed my pants. It was very obscene.)
Senate President Tempore Jinggoy Estrada asked the actor if both Nones and Cruz “took turns,” to which Muhlach replied with yes. Estrada then asked Nones if he’ll deny Muhlach’s allegations.
“I would like to invoke my right against self-incrimination since the case is already in the Department of Justice. We’ll answer there as these are already the details of the case,” Nones replied.
Estrada continued to ask Nones several questions — what time Muhlach arrived in their hotel room, who were present in the hotel room when Muhlach arrived, what was the white substance that Muhlach was talking about, what he did after Muhlach left — but the producer repeatedly invoked his right against self-incrimination. His legal counsel also explained that they still have not been furnished a copy of Muhlach’s complaint.
When asked by Estrada how Muhlach left the hotel room, Nones said the actor bid them goodbye since his girlfriend was already looking for him. But Muhlach said that the two contractors refused to let him leave claiming that Nones even tried to remove his shoes and make him lie down on the bed. The actor added that he kept on insisting to leave so Nones told him that “what happens here, stays here.”
Muhlach’s father, former child actor Niño, also attended the hearing in person and said that both Nones and Cruz already apologized to him during a meeting organized by GMA Films President Annette Gozon-Valdes.
“I don’t understand bakit all of a sudden, iba na ‘yung storya nila. Kaya sila nag-sorry, kaya kami nagkita (why all of a sudden they’re changing narratives now. We met up and they apologized) because they wanted to say sorry, that they thought it was okay, that it was consensual. ‘Akala po namin okay lang (We thought it was okay)’ – that was the exact words,” Niño said.
Nones explained that while they apologized, it was “not in the context of admission of any wrongdoing.” He also admitted that they were crying when it happened but added it was because “the allegations were so intense that it was affecting [them] emotionally because [they] tried to convince Niño Muhlach that [they] did no harm and no wrongdoing.”
Reports began circulating about a young actor who was allegedly sexually assaulted by two individuals described as “GMA executives” in late July. The incident was said to have occurred following the GMA Gala on July 20.
On August 1, GMA Network released a statement confirming that they had “received a formal complaint from Sparkle artist Sandro Muhlach against two GMA independent contractors, Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz.”
The network stated that they would “withhold all details of the formal investigation” to honor Muhlach’s request for confidentiality. GMA announced that they had launched an investigation into the matter.
On August 2, Muhlach officially filed a sexual molestation complaint against Nones and Cruz with the National Bureau of Investigation.
On August 19, Muhlach filed a complaint of rape through sexual assault against Nones and Cruz before the Department of Justice. – Rappler.com
