ABS-CBN issues statement on Noven Belleza sexual assault case
Noven Belleza via Instagram
ABS-CBN, in its official statement on the sexual assault case involving one of its talents Noven Belleza, has reiterated the singer’s claim of innocence and intention to prove this in court.
Released to the entertainment media yesterday, July 19, the network confirmed in the said statement Belleza’s posting of bail, giving him temporary freedom.
“Noven Belleza posted bail today in connection with the charge of sexual assault filed with the Regional Trial Court of Cebu City,” the network stated. “Noven asserts that he did not commit the crime charged and he will prove his innocence in the course of the legal proceedings.”
Belleza’s case was brought down from rape to sexual assault by the Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office. After he posted his bail of P120,000, the singer has been able to come back to Manila for work.
Belleza was arrested on Sunday night (July 16) after appearing at Vice Ganda’s concert in Cebu, following the accusations of a 19-year-old girl who alleges that the singer molested her.
A rice farmer from Negros Occidental, Belleza shot to fame after he won in “Tawag Ng Tanghalan”, a revival of a classic amateur singing contest which has its roots in the late 1950s, recently made into a segment of ABS-CBN’s noontime show “It’s Showtime”. He is currently under the network’s management, as part of his winnings in the contest.
Belleza joined the contest fueled by the drive to lift his family from poverty. In previous interviews, the singer shared that his family lived with only a P1,000 weekly budget, and that he had to sacrifice his schooling for his siblings’ education. JB
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