Roxanne Cabañero Acosta has been identified by her lawyer as the previously unknown woman who filed a new rape complaint against Vhong Navarro.
The charge was filed around 4 p.m. at the Pasig City Prosecutor’s Office by the woman and her attorney Virgilio Batalla.
Batalla said that the alleged rape happened in 2010.
Questioned why Roxanne only brought the charge forward now, Batallatold ABS-CBN that she gained confidence seeing Cornejo’s rape complaint filed.
Batalla claimed that the two rape complaints show that Navarro trying to rape women “can happen repeatedly,” and said that he is the chairman of a foundation that provides free lawyers to people in need.
Cedric Lee, a businessman, is connected to the Cornejo complaint and has had criminal charges filed against him as has Cornejo.
Batalla was asked whether his client has any connection with Lee, to which he said he doesn’t know of any.
On the other hand, Navarro’s lawyer Alma Mallonga told ABS-CBN that the new claim is “not unexpected.”
She said that several weeks ago Lee said that he had been talking to women who also claimed that Navarro tried to rape them, and that this charge could be a ploy by Lee’s camp.
She also dismissed the claim that Cornejo’s complaint inspired this one.
“If you’re saying that you were inspired by the rape complaint of Deniece, alam na natin na hindi iyun nangyari. Impossible dahil nakita natin sa ating dalawang mata na hindi iyon nangyari, that you cannot rape who was not there. You cannot witness a rape when the victim is not even there,” she said.
She added that Navarro is aware of the new charge and he is keen to prove his innocence.
“This has made him more determined to see this thing through,” she said.
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