(UPDATES) ACTOR Sandro Muhlach, the son of former child superstar Niño Muhlach, said on Tuesday he was forced to drink wine and coerced to inhale a white powdery substance before he was “raped” by two independent contractors of GMA Network.
Sandro made his testimony via teleconferencing before a Senate inquiry on the policies of television networks and artist management agencies regarding complaints of abuse and harassment in response to Sen. Robinhood Padilla’s privilege speech on Aug. 5, 2024.
Jojo Nones, one of the two accused, was present during the inquiry, but the other accused, Richard Cruz, was reportedly sick and confined at St. Luke’s Hospital.
Actor Sandro Muhlach. PHOTOS BY RENE H. DILAN
Sandro recounted that Nones texted him at 3:59 a.m. asking if he had gone home after the GMA Gala Night on July 20.
Their conversation covered various topics, including a project where Nones planned to cast him. The discussion then shifted to drinking alcohol, with Nones suggesting he could order more. Sandro asked who Nones was with and stopped responding after learning he was alone.
At 4:37 a.m., Nones texted again, saying he was with “drama peeps” and that they were “wrapping up in a bit,” which piqued Sandro’s interest. He asked if he could join them, eager to bond with the drama team.
“It’s an opportunity for an artist like me to talk to them,” he said. When he arrived, he saw Cruz lying in bed, drunk, while Nones offered him wine.
He drank the wine and was made to inhale something that made him numb. “I didn’t lie down. I was pulled into the bed,” Sandro said.
He said it was Nones who pulled him to the bed. Nones denied the Sandro’s revelations.
Nino Muhlach, who was present during the inquiry, told the Senate panel that Nones and Cruz had admitted to him in an arranged meeting what they had done to his son. The older Muhlach said Nones and Cruz cried and sobbed when they apologized to him.
Nones said that they apologized but did not admit to the rape charges against them by Sandro.
Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada asked Nones to relate the incident in the hotel, the practice of inviting aspiring actors for a drink and the powdery substance Sandro claimed Nones had poured on the table.
Nones invoked his right against self-incrimination.
GMA Network has already placed the two contractors on preventive suspension.
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