Vhong Navarro: No deal with Cornejo, Lee et al.

By: Niña P. Calleja - 11 years ago

Actor Vhong Navarro. MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

MANILA, Philippines—Comedian and television host Vhong Navarro has no intention of entering into any kind of settlement with model Deniece Cornejo, businessman Cedric Lee and four others whom he accused of mauling him and framing him for rape.

This was the sentiment Navarro aired to his lawyer after a mediation hearing was scheduled on June 2 by the Taguig Metropolitan Trial Court which is trying the grave coercion charge he filed against the suspects.

“At the hearing [on Wednesday], he was asked if he was willing enter into a settlement or a plea bargaining agreement. He said ‘No,’” Navarro’s lawyer, Alma Mallonga, said in a phone interview.

A mediation hearing is set by the court to allow the two parties in a case to discuss the possibility of reaching a settlement.

Aside from grave coercion, some of the accused were also charged by Navarro with serious illegal detention, a nonbailable offense. The charges were filed after the TV host accused the suspects of beating him up and framing him for the rape of Cornejo to extort money from him.

Cornejo responded by charging him with two counts of rape but the case was dismissed by a Department of Justice panel for lack of evidence.

On Thursday, Cornejo and Bernice, Lee’s sister who is also one of the accused, were arraigned on the grave coercion charge. Both entered a plea of not guilty.

Lee and mixed martial arts expert Simeon “Zimmer” Raz, however, failed to appear in court, prompting Mallonga to ask officers of the National Bureau of Investigation—where the two are detained—to explain why they were absent.

Another no-show was Sajed “Jed Fernandez” Abuhijleh, prompting the court to revoke the bail bond he posted and reissue a warrant for his arrest.

Fernandez is also being sought by authorities as he was one of those charged with serious illegal detention by Navarro.

Security at the Taguig Hall of Justice, meanwhile, remained tight as media men were barred from covering the court proceedings and entering the building.