Vhong, no show at mediation hearing; Cedric Lee cuts insulting remarks

After the first day of the mediation hearing for the grave coercion case filed by actor Vhong Navarro against Deniece Cornejo, Cedric Lee and six others, Cedric let out a cutting remark against the actor.

Asked by reporters for comments after the mediation hearing, Cedric Lee said, “Hindi dumating ‘yung rapist, eh. May nire-rape pa sa ibang lugar” (The rapist did not arrive. He’s somewhere else still raping someone).

Navarro, who skipped the mediation hearing, was accused of rape by Deniece Cornejo but the case has been dismissed for lack of probable cause. Two other women filed similar cases against him.

Atty. Alma Mallonga explained why her client did not attend the mediation. She said, “Among others, we did raise the fact that we had legitimate concerns about kung ano’ng mangyayari pag siya’y nandito ulit” (…we had legitimate concerns about what might happen if he’s here again).

The lawyer was clearly referring to the incident during the preliminary investigation of the 3rd rape case filed by a stuntwoman against her client when the alleged victims and their relatives confronted him.

Roxanne Cabañero , the second woman to accuse the actor of rape, yelled at him and threw her sunglasses at Vhong out of frustrastion when she could not get near him while Florencia Cornejo, Deniece Cornejo’s grandmother and other relatives sported t-shirts with prints that read, “Justice for rape victims, jail the serial rapist.” They heckled the actor and chanted “rapist, rapist.”

Reporters asked Mallonga for a reaction to Cedric Lee’s earlier ‘rapist’ remarks. She said Lee’s cutting remarks are the precise examples why they are reluctant to have Navarro attend some court hearings.

“Nakita niyo? Bibigyan ba natin sila ng opportunities na gawin ito?” she said. (You see? Are we going to give them opportunities to do this?)

The next mediation hearing will be held on July 7. The mediator requested that Vhong Navarro be present during the next mediation session.

Here’s Cedric Lee’s ‘rapist’ remark: