Vhong Navarro's request to stay held at NBI is denied by the court

A Taguig court has dismissed comedian-host Vhong Navarro's request to remain in the detention facility of the National Bureau of Investigation due to alleged rape accusations, officials said on Friday.

Counsel for Navarro, Atty. Prior to this, Alma Mallongga filed an urgent request asking the NBI to keep custody of the actor.

In his request, Navarro stated that he wants to fight the allegations brought against him and that his decision to turn himself in to the NBI was motivated by genuine concerns for his safety and his life due to the extreme enmity between him and the accuser, Deniece Cornejo, and her associates.

He included in his pleading that his wife received an SMS message from an unknown cellphone number with the text, 

“Pasabi diyan sa asawa mong rapist Mr. Suabi, nag aantay kami dito sa Taguig, paki bilisan”.

(Tell your rapist husband Mr Suabi, we're waiting here in Taguig, hurry up.)

Navarro asserted that the text message must be treated seriously and mentioned that Cornejo and her pals were jailed in Taguig City for beating him before being released on bail in 2014.

He emphasized that it's probable they made ties with gangs when they were detained in the municipal jail.

But as Taguig RTC Branch 69 Judge Loralie Cruz Datahan observed, Navarro was unable to demonstrate why his imprisonment at the NBI should continue. She remarked that the SMS message may be read in several ways and that Navarro did not provide any supporting documentation.

The local jail is required to uphold and defend inmates' human rights, the court underscored.

Counsel of Cornejo, Attorney In the meanwhile, Ferdinand Topacio submitted a manifestation with an urgent request to transfer incarceration. He referenced the court's guidelines, which provide that the accused must be sent without undue delay to the nearest police station or prison.

In addition, Topacio cited the Bureau of Jail Management Rules and Procedures, which said that an accused person shall be held in the location where the arrest warrant was issued.

In addition, he asked the court to rule on the manifestation and issue a directive for the NBI to send Navarro to the Taguig City Jail.

The media has questioned Mallongga about the court's decision and Topacio's manifestation, but she has not yet reacted.