Muhlach narrates ordeal; Santos names ‘rapist’

MANILA, Philippines — Actor Sandro Muhlach was emotional when he recalled yesterday the alleged sexual abuse done against him by two GMA Network independent contractors in July.

During the hearing of the Senate committee on public information and mass media, Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada asked Muhlach, who attended the proceeding virtually, if he was ready to detail the sexual abuse allegedly done to him by Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz.

Muhlach said when he arrived at the hotel room where the two were checked into, Nones introduced him to Cruz who was drunk.

“They handed me a glass of wine. Sir Jojo made me drink the wine. He gave me a P500 bill and put a white substance on the table,” Muhlach said. “He taught me how to use the substance. He and Dode Cruz snorted first, then they made me do the same.”

Muhlach gave additional details during the hearing, but eventually stopped as he deemed the details “too obscene.”

Nones invoked his right to self-incrimination when Estrada asked him about the actor’s accusations, saying the case has been filed before the Department of Justice.

Estrada further asked Nones about the “white substance” as well as giving Muhlach wine, but the suspect again refused to answer.

With Nones’ refusal to answer the questions, he should remain under Senate custody, Estrada said.

Cruz did not attend the hearing. His lawyer said he was confined at St. Luke’s Hospital in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig because of “gastrointestinal bleeding.”

Meanwhile, a musical director was tagged as the alleged sexual abuser of singer Gerald Santos when he was 15 years old.

During the continuation of the public hearing presided over by Sen. Robinhood Padilla, Santos said he was ready to face his alleged abuser, Danny Tan.

“Now I’m ready to face my real enemy – the one who molested me when I was only 15, Danny Tan,” Santos said.

The singer said he tried to commit suicide four times because of his ordeal.

But because of his determination to get his family out of poverty, Santos said he tried to forget his “horrible experience.”

He appealed to the Senate to look into the law against sexual harassment, especially rape against men.

Tan could not be contacted for comment on the accusations hurled against him.