MANILA, Philippines — Deniece Cornejo is given another chance to air her side on the sexual harassment allegations she filed against actor Ferdinand "Vhong" Navarro after the Court of Appeals (CA) granted her appeal on July 21.
In a 26-page decision signed by Associate Justice Florencio M. Mamauag Jr., the appeals court ordered the Office of the City Prosecutor of Taguig to file Rape by Sexual Intercouse under Article 266-A of the Revised Penal Code and Republic Act 8353, and Acts of Lasciviousness under Article 336 of the Revised Penal Code against Navarro.
It also stated that it has reversed and set aside the resolutions promulgated by the Department of Justice on April 30, 2018 and July 14, 2020.
"Ultimately, it falls upon the trial court to determine who between Navarro and Cornejo speaks the truth. Cornejo decries attempted rape on the night of January 22, 2014 while Navarro denies any wrongdoing on his part. We reiterate once more that the preliminary investigation is not the proper venue to rule on the respondent's guilt or innocence," it stated.
Read: Deniece Cornejo files rape complaint vs Vhong
Cornejo claimed that Navarro attempted to sexually harrass her in her condominium in Taguig on Jan. 22, 2014. Businessman Cedric Lee figured in the incident after the National Bureau of Investigation filed several cases against him and Cornejo based on Navarro's affidavit on his alleged mauling in Taguig following events seen on the CCTV.
In September 2017, the DOJ junked the two counts of rape filed by Cornejo "due to lack of probable cause" in a 24-page review resolution.
Read: Rape complaint against Vhong Navarro junked
In July 2018, the Taguig City Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 74 found Lee, Cornejo and several others guilty of grave coercion and sentenced them to a minimum of six months and a maximum of three years and six months in prison. Navarro had filed the case against them after he alleged that they had forced him to admit to the rape charges.
Read: Cedric Lee, Deniece Cornejo get 3 years for Vhong Navarro attack
"Finally, it must be borne in mind that the admissibility or inadmissibility of the parties' evidence should be ventilated before the trial court during the trial proper and not in the preliminary investigation," the CA resolution read.
"There need not be an inquiry into whether there is sufficient evidence to procure a conviction. What is merely required is probability of guilt, the determination of which does not call for the application of rules or standards of proof that a judgment of conviction requires after trial on the merits. It is enough that it is believed that the act or omission complained of constitutes the offense charged. Precisely, there is a trial for the reception of evidence of the prosecution in support of the charge," it continued.
READ: CA orders rape case vs Vhong Navarro filed