The young actor has made his first public appearance amidst the controversy.
On the morning of Monday, August 19, actor Sandro Muhlach went to the headquarters of the Department of Justice (DOJ) in Manila to formally file a complaint against Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz, two independent contractors of GMA Network.
Sandro was accompanied by his father, actor Niño Muhlach during the filing of his rape through sexual assault case.
“Parang nakaluwang-luwang na sa dibdib dahil umabot na tayo sa araw na ito. Ang bigat kasi nakikita mo ‘yung anak mo araw-araw na nag-susuffer. Hindi makakain, hindi makatulog,” Niño Muhlach said before the press people.
The same day, the Kapuso actor virtually attended via teleconferencing the Senate Committee on Public Information and Mass Media inquiry on the policies of television networks and artist management agencies in relation to complaints of abuse and harassment.
Also present during the hearing were the respondents Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz.
At the start of his testimony, Muhlach narrated the exchange of text messages between him and Nones.
Although, Muhlach’s legal counsel held back in giving exact details of what occurred on the night of July 21, 2024, when the incident happened — citing the the respondents have not yet received a formal copy of their complaint.
To divulge some details, the committee went into executive session, with only the conversation limited to Sandro, his father Niño, legal counsel, and Senators Robin Padilla and Jinggoy Estrada.
After the executive session, Estrada continued his inquiry, where the topic was on the “sniffing” of a particular object using a Php 500 bill.
Muhlach said that he was taught by Nones and Cruz how to sniff that object, and was later asked to drink a glass of wine.
When Senator Estrada asked him on what he felt after that, Sandro replied that he felt numb.
Muhlach had also claimed that he was grabbed by Nones to bed, where the incident began.
As the hearing progressed, some details were also discussed, such as what happened during and the messages Nones sent to Muhlach after the alleged incident happened.
In light of the accounts shared by the actor, the independent contractors categorically denied all allegations against them before the Senate committee.
According to Nones, had only invited Muhlach to join him and Cruz in the hotel room to have a brief talk about the happenings at the GMA Gala the night before, as well as socialize with one another.
Also brought up during the committee hearing was the alleged offer of Nones and Cruz to make a donation to any charitable institution of Niño Muhlach’s choice.
The respondents repeatedly denied that they have made such a move as a settlement with the Muhlach camp, claiming that it was only part of a larger conversation that had led to that topic.
Sen. Jinggoy Estrada then moved to cite Jojo Nones in contempt, as the senator said that the GMA independent contractor had been lying before the committee.
As there were no objections to the motion, it was approved by committee chairperson Sen. Robin Padilla.