'We’re one step closer to justice': Sandro Muhlach testifies in Pasay court vs. alleged abusers
Trigger warning: This article contains mentions of rape and sexual assault.
Sandro Muhlach testified against his alleged abusers, Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz, in court for the first time.
“I felt so relieved, but the hearing is not over yet," he told reporters on Wednesday, March 19, according to The Philippine STAR. "I can achieve justice when I’ve said everything I have to say."
The Sparkle artist, whose rape through sexual assault case against Nones and Cruz was filed by the justice department on his behalf, didn't finish his testimony at Pasay Regional Trial Court Branch 114 due to time constraints. Still, he said they're "one step closer to justice."
Muhlach noted that six officers of the National Bureau of Investigation and its Behavioral Science Department attended the hearing.
"Sa kanila ako nagsumbong, sila ang nag-alaga sa 'kin for the whole six months na nagthe-therapy ako sa kanila, so malaki utang na loob ko sa NBI, dahil sila 'yung nag-alaga sa 'kin at tinututukan nila ako palagi, kaya maraming-maraming salamat sa NBI," GMA News quoted Muhlach as saying.
Though he's not yet fully healed from what happened, the actor thanked his parents, girlfriend, and the justice department for their support.
"Lahat sila andiyan lang sa tabi ko," he said. "Hindi ko na-feel na mag-isa ako kasi andiyan sila sa tabi ko."
Judge Elmer Joseph Guerzon scheduled another hearing on March 25.
The March 19 trial proceeded as Guerzon had dismissed Nones and Cruz's motion to quash the rape through sexual assault case due to lack of merit last February.
That same month, Pasay Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 46 granted Nones and Cruz's motion to quash the two counts of acts of lasciviousness against them. The court noted it was an "overkill," as it's already an element of rape through sexual assault. Muhlach said they're going to file a motion for reconsideration for the acts of lasciviousness case.
Muhlach's legal battle with Nones and Cruz began in August 2024 when GMA disclosed that they received a formal complaint from him against GMA Network's independent contractors, but the network did not specify the issue.
The next day, Muhlach and his father, former child actor Niño Muhlach, went to the National Bureau of Investigation to formally file a sexual molestation complaint against Nones and Cruz. The actor returned to the NBI office four days later to submit additional documents before filing a rape case against the two suspects at the DOJ.
Before the formal filing of complaints happened, the names of Muhlach, Nones, and Cruz made the rounds on social media after a local entertainment news website published a blind item claiming that two program executives sexually harassed a newbie artist in a hotel room. The alleged incident happened while an extravagant gathering took place on the hotel's premises, the report said.
The issue became the subject of multiple Senate hearings, with Nones and Cruz in attendance. Nones was cited in contempt at one point and was placed under Senate custody for allegedly lying under oath.
Nones and Cruz repeatedly denied the allegations in the hearings despite senators saying there was "strong evidence" against them.
