Actor-host Vhong Navarro filed on Thursday, April 10, his response to the complaint lodged against him by Margarita "Mai" Fajardo. The said complaint is the third rape charge filed against Navarro.
On the same day, the Department of Justice (DOJ) junked an earlier rape charge filed against him by model Deniece Cornejo.
Navarro vs. Cornejo
The first person to file rape charges against Vhong was modelCornejo, who said in her affidavit that the actor forced her to perform oral sex on him, and tried to insert his penis in her vagina on January 22. This was the same night Lee and his group allegedly came to her rescue.
Navarro said he was blindfolded and tied up then attacked by at least six men. Lee and his companions has denied Navarro's allegations that they tried to blackmail him.
Asked to comment on DOJ's junking of the rape charge against Navarro, Cornejo's lawyer, Atty. Howard Calleja said, "We reserve our right to comment at this point in time because we have not received the copy of the resolution, and we also reserve our right to proceed with the legal remedies available for our client."
Navarro—who was doing his routine hosting duties in the noontime show It's Showtime when he got the news that the DOJ had junked Cornejo's case against him—cried tears of joy.
Navarro addressed the public, saying, "Gusto ko pong magpasalamat sa ating Panginoon, especially sa madlang people, sa mga naniniwala, sa mga nagdasal, sa lahat po ng nagpalakas ng aking loob sa likod at sa harap ng camera."
Problematic sequels: Cabañero and Fajardo
The second rape charge filed against the actor was from Roxanne Cabañero.
The complaint-affidavit, which was signed by Cabañero who was then a Miss Bikini Philippines pageant candidate and Assistant City Prosecutor Richard Parras, specifies that the alleged rape happened on "April 24, 2010, 11-pm to 1:AM" in "Pasig City, near Astoria Hotel."
Cabañero said she was raped by Navarro after he supposedly fetched her from the hotel, where she claimed to have been staying with other pageant contestants.
Comedian Vice Ganda, however, made a testimony, claiming Navarro was among the guest performers at his concert held at Island Cove resort in Cavite, on the same night Cabanero alleged that the actor raped her in Pasig City.
Fajardo is the latest one to charge Navarro With rape. She claimed the incident happened in 2009, when she was working as a stunt double in a show where Navarro was one of the cast members.
Navarro's lawyer, Atty. Alma Mallonga, earlier said Navarro had been expecting the third rape complaint, alleging that this is probably just another ploy by businessman Cedric Lee to divert attention away from the primary case.
Lee, who is identified as Cornejo's friend, is one of eight persons slapped with criminal charges in relation to the mauling of Navarro last January 22. Lee has denied Navarro's allegations.
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