By ROWENA JOY A. SANCHEZ
Manila Bulletin
Actor-turned-politician Patrick dela Rosa denied the rape charge filed against him by a 20-year old student.
In a letter sent to Mindoro Oriental governor Alfonso “Boy†Umali (a part of which was shown on a “24 Oras†report on Oct. 19), the provincial board member maintained that the accusation was merely fabricated.
“I deny the accusation hurled against me and I am prepared to present my witnesses and the pieces of evidence,†he stated.
Dela Rosa wrote the governor to formally file a leave of absence while his case is ongoing. He is currently detained at the Quezon City Jail where he was transferred on Tuesday. He was previously held at the Quezon City Police District Station 7 after being arrested on Oct. 8.
On his way to the QC Jail, Dela Rosa was seen covering his cuffed hands with a white towel. He underwent the usual process for detainees---finger scanning, booking photograph (mug shot), and medical examination---before he was taken to what the GMA-7 report described as a crammed cell.
As what he did in previous attempts by the press to get an interview, Dela Rosa declined to speak up on the matter.
Meanwhile, witnesses who were on the side of the supposed victim retracted their previous statements that Dela Rosa performed the alleged heinous act in a room at the Regalla Tower condominium in Cubao, Quezon City on the early morning of Oct. 8.
In Julius Babao’s “TV Patrol†interview aired on Oct. 19, the witnesses revealed that the complainant allegedly told them later that no such rape took place.
However, a text message sent to GMA-7 by Atty. Freddie Villamor, legal counsel of the supposed rape victim, reiterated that the retraction of the witnesses will not affect their case.
“It’s only the victim who knows if she was actually raped or not. And there is really no witness for that except the victim."
He added that he is yet to talk to his client about the witnesses' recent revelations.
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Topic: Actor Patrick Dela Rosa Charged with Raping a Student (Read 1163 times)